1. The consecrated life is a gift which the Father has given to the church by
means of the Spirit so that, in faithfulness to the Gospel, the most
characteristic traits of the life of his Son Jesus, the chaste, poor and
obedient one (cf. Mt. 8:20; Phil. 2:8), and the unfathomable riches of his
mystery (cf. Eph. 3:8), might be present in the world and might draw everyone
toward the kingdom of God.[1] Therefore, the ninth ordinary general assembly of
the Synod of Bishops, which has as its topic "the consecrated life and its
role in the church and in the world" is a grace-filled moment for the
entire people of God.

The leading characters in this event will be above all the bishops gathered
in communion with the Holy Father John Paul II. As pastors and guides in
perfection, and faithful to the charism of each institute,[2] they will listen
to the Spirit and give attention to the desires and needs expressed by the
church concerning the institutes of consecrated life and the societies of
apostolic life. Their particular task is one of discernment and pastoral
guidance. Present alongside the bishops will be some representatives of the
superiors general for men.

Also present, as observers, will be some women and men religious, men and
women members of institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life,
priests, lay women and men, called by the Holy Father to express in this way the
universality of the church and all her vocations, in a mutual listening to the
experiences and desires of the whole people of God.

It is urgent that the whole church gather in prayer around the synod fathers
and the other synod participants in order to implore the light of the Holy
Spirit through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints,
especially the saintly founders and foundresses. It is to the Holy Spirit, who
stirs these charisms in the church, that prayer is raised in one voice, that he
may guide the church toward a renewed outpouring of his gift of wisdom and grace
for a new Pentecost in the consecrated life. He is "the life and strength
of the people of God, the bond of its communion, the vigor of its mission, the
source of its multiple gifts, the secret of its admirable unity, the radiance
and beauty of its creative power and the fire of its love."[3]

The Present Hour

2. The aim of the synod is to reflect on the consecrated life in the light of
God's plan, returning to the sources of grace from which it arises, the great
wealth of its historical expressions and the legacy of its saints. At the same
time, however, the synod is intended to discern the challenges and expectations
of the contemporary world, for which the Holy Spirit enriches the consecrated
life with resources of grace, spirituality, manifold works and creativity in the
apostolic life.

During recent decades, in the wake of the Second Vatican Council, the church
has delved deeper into her nature and mission in the light of the ecclesiology
of communion[4] in order to understand more deeply her mystery rooted in the
Trinity, her nature as a sign and instrument of intimate union with God and of
the unity of the human race.[5] In recent synods this vision has given us a
better understanding of the vocation and mission of the laity (1987) and of the
identity and mission of priests and their formation in the circumstances of the
present day (1990), as can be clearly seen in the post-synodal apostolic
exhortations <Christifideles Laici> and <Pastores Dabo Vobis.> The
ecclesiology of communion must now contribute to a deeper reflection on the
consecrated life in the church. It is impossible to have an adequate conception
of the mystery, communion and mission of the church without an understanding of
the consecrated life, just as the consecrated life cannot be understood and
lived unless it is rooted in the church's mystery, communion and mission.

The framework for this reflection on the consecrated life is the new
evangelization of today's world, characterized by the rise of new values and
cultures which have a conditioning effect on the traditional view of the
consecrated life. While this context presents significant challenges to its
identity and mission, it also affords a providential opportunity, on the basis
of the creativity of the charisms of the Spirit, to evoke courageous responses
based on the Gospel. The hope-filled moment in which the church is living calls
for such a reflection, as does the constant invitation coming from Christ and
from the charism of the founders and foundresses, which continues in time.

John Paul II recalled the meaning of the coming synod in these words:
"The successors of the apostles will meet to discuss your life and the
contribution which your founders and foundresses—and your respective spiritual
families with them—have given and still give to the mission of the church.
They want to understand in all its breadth and depth the design of the Lord who
sanctifies, enriches and also guides his people through the gifts and charisms
of the communities of consecrated life and the societies of apostolic life. The
bishops want to help you to be Gospel leaven and evangelizers of the cultures of
the third millennium and of the social ordering of the peoples."[6]

In a recent address to superiors general, he affirmed: "Today the
religious life is experiencing a particularly significant moment of its history
because of the demanding and widespread renewal imposed by the changed
socio-cultural conditions at the threshold of the third millennium of the
Christian era.... In their day the founders and foundresses were able to
incarnate the Gospel message with courage and holiness. It is necessary that,
faithful to the breath of the Spirit, their spiritual daughters and sons
continue this witness in time, imitating their creativity, with a mutual
fidelity to the charism of their origins, and in constant listening to the
demands of the present moment."[7]

An Encouraging Response

3. Preparations for the coming synod are in progress throughout the church.
This can be seen from the many initiatives of reflection, prayer and study. A
widespread response has been given to the <lineamenta> which, following a
well-established method, is intended to offer points of reference to promote
reflection—even on negative aspects—and elicit responses, suggestions and
evaluations.

A sign of the interest aroused by the synod is the quantity and quality of
the official responses sent to the General Secretariat of the Synod by the
episcopal conferences and the synods of the Oriental churches, the departments
of the Roman Curia, the Union of Superiors General for Men and the International
Union of Superiors General for Women and the World Conference of Secular
Institutes.

In addition to these, many observations were sent by cardinals and bishops,
national and international conferences of men and women religious, individual
institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life, confederations
and federations of monasteries as well as individual monasteries, priests, women
and men religious, consecrated virgins and hermits, theologians and brethren
from other churches and Christian communities. This is valuable material which
offers assistance in coming to an understanding of the situation and the
expectations of the consecrated life in the church and in the world today.

Additional Intensive Study

4. An attentive study of the responses and observations has pointed above all
to questions of a general nature as well as to those proper to various nations
and institutes concerning the present state of the consecrated life, its
identity and role in ecclesial communion and some of the most urgent questions
involving the present and future of consecrated life. The <instrumentum
laboris> has taken all this material into account, with an eye toward the
celebration of the synodal assembly.

Emerging from the responses is a general view of the topics and trends which,
although having certain differences according to individual institutes, various
nations and cultural and geographic areas, offers a substantial convergence of
"lights and shadows," hopes and desires, and questions and obligations
concerning the consecrated life in the church and in the world. According to
some, this is a period of transformation or of profound change in the
consecrated life, while others see it as one of renewal, revitalization and
refoundation.

Furthermore, the responses give rise to a renewed evaluation of the
consecrated life and the forms it has taken, especially in the following
directions: an emphasis on its specific nature and variety of charisms; special
attention to the diversity of geographical and cultural situations; a reflection
on its relationship to the mystery, communion and mission of the church; a
courageous statement of its identity and apostolic mission so that it may have
the renewed impetus to be a prophetic witness today for the salvation of the
world.

By its very nature the <instrumentum laboris> is intended to offer
topics for the synod's discussion. It is meant to illustrate, pinpoint and delve
deeper into these aspects in the light of the responses, bearing in mind the
complexity of the consecrated life, its universal reality and the pastoral
nature of the synod. At the same time, it must not fail to highlight some
specific questions which many responses entrust to the synod's reflection. This
synodal document takes its inspiration from the word of God and the church's
tradition, and draws upon the teaching of Vatican II and the post-conciliar
documents on the consecrated life.[8] In this way, as the majority of the
responses have requested, it is meant to recall the church's teaching and open
new paths to theological reflection on the consecrated life and its spiritual
and apostolic spirit.

The Consecrated Life

5. It seems essential to make an initial clarification on the topic of the
synod so all might have a better understanding of the complexity and variety of
individuals, communities and institutes to which it refers.

Historically speaking, the expression <consecrated life> has various
meanings in the documents of Vatican II and in recent canonical legislation of
the universal church. The dogmatic constitution <Lumen Gentium> and the
decree <Perfectae Caritatis>[9] describe the rise of various forms of
religious and consecrated life, that is, institutes devoted entirely to
contemplation, institutes of monastic and conventual life, clerical institutes
dedicated to various apostolic works, lay institutes and secular institutes.

The Code of Canon Law includes among the institutes of consecrated life
religious institutes in general and secular institutes. In this category it also
places the eremitical and anchoritic life. It also mentions that the order of
virgins is similar (<accedit>) to the forms of consecrated life, as are
societies of apostolic life as well (<accedunt>).[10]

The Code of Canons of the Oriental Churches speaks first of all of monks,
among whom can be included hermits and religious.[11] It considers societies of
common life such as (<ad instar>) religious[12] and secular
institutes.[13] It also mentions the ascetics who imitate the eremitical life
and the virgins and widows who, although living in the world, make a public
profession of chastity.[14] Finally, it adds societies of apostolic life.[15]

Today there are approximately 1,423 institutes of women religious of
pontifical right and 1,550 of diocesan right. Among the religious institutes for
men there are 250 of pontifical right and 242 of diocesan right. There are
approximately 165 secular institutes of pontifical or diocesan right, including
those of priests, clerics or groups of lay women and men. There are also 39
societies of apostolic life of pontifical right. To these we must add a growing
number of consecrated virgins, of consecrated widows and widowers, hermits and
hermitesses and other groups that have initiated the process of canonical
recognition.

The Synod of Bishops, being universal by nature, cannot overlook this broad
and complex vision of the consecrated life.

Meaning and Limits of Terminology

6. As explicitly stated at the announcement of the topic of the ninth
ordinary general assembly of the Synod of Bishops and at the presentation of the
<lineamenta,> the object of synod discussion is the various forms of
consecrated life, to which are added the societies of apostolic life.

The responses have indicated that the great variety of forms and traditions
within the institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life
presents some weighty problems.

The first of these problems is terminology. The responses point out that a
great majority of people continue to use indiscriminately the terms
<religious life> and <religious.> Although technically speaking
these terms designate only institutes of religious life as such, instances of
their misuse are common, even in some documents of the magisterium.

Although it is already present in Vatican II,[16] the term <consecrated
life> seems rather new to many people. Some think the designation is not
entirely appropriate and even discriminatory, as if to say through its use that
other Christians are not "consecrated" in their baptism. The terms
<consecration> and <consecrated life> are taken here in their
precise theological meaning, indicating a life consecrated by means of the
evangelical counsels and recognized as such by the church.[17] For obvious
practical reasons the <instrumentum laboris> usually uses the term
<consecrated life> as such or similar expressions. The widespread
designation of this terminology must be taken in an analogical sense and
according to the proper nature of the diverse forms of life which are included
in it. At times a specific terminology is used so as to refer to each of the
forms of consecrated life according to their nature.

Many responses express a desire for the specific treatment of each form of
the consecrated life and for finding adequate solutions to problems, even local
ones. Such specific attention to the matter is usually claimed above all because
of the specific nature and mission of the secular institutes, which are seen as
typically diverse because of the secular nature of their life and apostolate. A
similar notion is voiced concerning the societies of apostolic life, consecrated
virgins and hermits.

In accordance with the official title of the ninth ordinary general assembly,
the <instrumentum laboris> treats the connotations, values, problems,
demands and tasks of the institutes of consecrated life and societies of
apostolic life in the present-day circumstances of the church and the world,
clarifying in some cases specific features regarding above all identity,
communion, mission and major priorities for the immediate future. Each institute
and form of consecrated life is distinguished because of its specific nature,
mission and charism. In the synodal gathering the <instrumentum laboris>
will permit an ample dialogue on all questions of a universal and pastoral
nature.

Plan of the <Instrumentum Laboris>

7. The purpose of this document is the preparation of the synod discussion of
the consecrated life and its role in the church and in the world. Based on the
responses, it offers a broad-based exposition divided into four parts.

The first part, "the consecrated life today," presents the
theological, spiritual and pastoral reality of the consecrated life (I), its
situation in the circumstances of the present day (II) and according to
geographic and cultural areas (III), questions concerning some specific forms
(IV) and the request for a renewed theological synthesis (V).

The second part, "the consecrated life in the mystery of Christ and the
church," offers a theological vision of the consecrated life within the
mystery of the church (I), some common features about vocation, the following of
Christ and consecration (II) in the dimension of communion, mission and witness
(III).

The third part, "the consecrated life in ecclesial communion," is a
continuation of the second part and treats more accurately the perspective of
the ecclesiology of communion (I), in the universal church and the particular
churches (II).

The fourth part, "the consecrated life in the church's mission for the
world," studies the challenges and tasks of the consecrated life for the
future (I), the call to the new evangelization (II), the response of its
evangelical charisms for the world (III).

I. CONSECRATED LIFE TODAY

I. A Presence in Church and World

Like the Gospel Leaven

8. It is necessary to keep in mind the wealth and variety of forms of the
consecrated life today in order to be aware of the reality and complexity of the
synod's topic. Nevertheless, it is not easy to furnish a complete description.
There is no such thing as consecrated life in the abstract; rather, it is
expressed in diverse forms and institutes, incarnated in real persons—women
and men—in diverse settings, situations, spiritualities and apostolates.

Its members constitute an important group in the church, comparable to the
Gospel leaven (cf. Lk. 13:21). The members of the institutes of consecrated life
and societies of apostolic life number more than a million, but they are a
minority within the people of God. In statistical terms they amount to only 0.12
percent of the members of the Catholic Church. Of this percentage group, women
constitute 72.5 percent of consecrated persons, while 27.5 percent are men. With
the majority of consecrated persons being women and lay brothers, the group is
thus made up of 82.2 percent laity, leaving only 17.8 percent priests or
deacons.

Though small in number, this group is "a radiant sign of the kingdom of
heaven" for the church and for the world.[18] Concentrated in it is a
variety of forms of life, spiritual traditions and apostolic works bearing
witness to the manifold grace of Christ, the presence of the Spirit and the
power of the Gospel.

The consecrated life is a <memoria> of the teachings and example of
Christ and the Gospel values lived by the saints in the course of the pilgrimage
of the people of God throughout the ages. It is a witness of commitment in the
following of Christ and a prophecy of the eschatological destiny of history.

A common reality unifies consecrated persons—the call to total self-giving
to God; love for Christ the teacher, Lord and bridegroom of the church, who is
intimately followed and served above everything; and the decision to live
according to the Spirit.

The consecrated life is a prophetic witness to the primacy of God and to the
things that do not pass away. Indeed, its value lies more in "being"—from
God and for God—than in "doing"—its mission—although there
should be no dichotomy between being and doing.

Common Witness

9. In the Catholic Church the consecrated life expresses a yearning which is
typical of the Gospel vocation. This can even be found today in some
non-Catholic churches and communities. In fact, the eremitic and monastic life
are held in great honor in the nonuniate Eastern churches, which have preserved
the great spiritual, liturgical and apostolic tradition of their origins.[19] In
some non-Catholic ecclesial communities forms of consecrated life have been
preserved or new forms of consecrated life have arisen—similar to those of the
Catholic tradition—especially in the Anglican church and more recently in the
evangelical and Reformed communities. The common witness of commitment to Christ
and the values of the evangelical life can be a valid element for promoting
unity through the exercise of ecumenical dialogue and the spiritual ecumenism of
conversion and prayer.

Analogous forms of personal dedication seen in the search for the divine, in
meditation, prayer, asceticism and the witness to the transcendent values—often
accompanied by compassionate service to one's neighbor—can be found in other
non-Christian religions. The consecrated life can be the basis for a fruitful
dialogue with them and offer a common witness to the values of the Spirit.[20]

The consecrated life, which is inspired by the Gospel, is a sharing in the
consecration of Jesus, the Son of God and savior, the basis of consecration for
all the baptized. However, in other religions we cannot fail to find the
life-giving breath of the Spirit from whom comes all that is true, good, just
and beautiful, as seeds of the word called to bear fruit in due season and as
the renewing leaven of society. In this way the consecrated life, together with
other forms of evangelical life and the search for the absolute in various
religions, in taking on cherished spiritual values, exercises a critical
symbolic and transforming role within society and interprets the transcendent
hopes of humanity.

Gospel's Presence in the World

10. The consecrated life, though a minority in numbers, has a rich presence
in the church and in the world through its wealth of communities and groups. It
performs a genuine ministry in the praise of God and the salvation of the world
in the celebration of the eucharist, liturgical prayer, asceticism and
contemplation. It is active in evangelization and catechesis, in works of
charity serving the victims of both old and new forms of poverty; in being close
to the sick and marginalized, in the education of children and adolescents, in
schools and universities, in the advancement of culture, in teaching the values
of justice and peace, and in the means of social communications. Often the
consecrated life is found in the front lines of the church's mission and
dialogue with the world.

In all parts of the earth consecrated persons live the same events as the
people of God in various geographical and cultural contexts. They share the joys
and hopes and the sorrows and anguish of the men and women of today, especially
of the poor and suffering, because nothing that is genuinely human fails to find
an echo in the hearts of Christ's disciples.[21]

Scattered throughout all areas of the particular churches, consecrated
persons are placed among the people as a sign of ecclesial communion and
Christian fraternity. They are often found in the "desert" where there
is no one, on the "margins of society" where they experience poverty
and share the necessities of people, and on the "front lines" where
they face the risks of proclaiming the Gospel in difficult situations.

After almost 20 yeas, Paul VI's words can be recalled describing the
consecrated life's evangelizing presence in the church and in the world. He
honors and stimulates the fidelity of the consecrated life to its vocation,
consecration and mission when he says:

"By virtue of their consecration they are particularly free and willing
to leave all things and go to the ends of the earth to preach the Gospel. They
are always full of courage in their work, and their apostolate is often
outstanding in its admirable resourcefulness and initiative. They are generous
and are often to be found in the most remote mission stations, where they may
have to endure great dangers to health and even to life. The church is
undoubtedly greatly indebted to them."[22]

The consecrated life also has a hidden presence, that is, the great number of
consecrated persons who, even in old age or illness continue to exercise a
beneficial influence through the offering of their prayers, through their wisdom
and through their faithfulness day by day. Nor should those be forgotten who in
recent times—and even at this present moment in various nations—have
suffered for their fidelity to Christ and the church.

A Tree With Many Branches

11. A desire expressed in many of the responses is that the variety of forms
in consecrated life not be reduced in perspective or stifled. This variety
corresponds to the manifold grace of Christ, to the church's historical
experience and bears witness to the "catholicity" of the evangelical
values, which the Holy Spirit has raised up and preserves for the fullness of
the Gospel of Christ.

Vatican II contemplates the spread of the consecrated life, rooted in the
words and example of the Lord, from its origins to our day in the light of the
parable of the Gospel seed (cf. Lk. 13:19): "From the God-given seed of the
counsels a wonderful and wide- spreading tree has grown up in the field of the
Lord, branching out into various forms of religious life lived in solitude or in
community. Different religious families have come into existence in which
spiritual resources are multiplied for the advancement in holiness of their
members and for the good of the entire body of Christ."[23]

Very much alive in the church's memory is the historic fact of the eremitic,
monastic, religious and apostolic life, first born in the East with the
consecration to God of Christian virgins, anchorites and cenobites. These
persons exemplify the first forms of consecrated life which were guided by the
teaching and the <apoftegmi> of the "fathers" and
"mothers" of the desert, organized by the first monastic rules and
recognized by the church with special rites such as the consecration of virgins
and monastic profession. Continuing throughout history, with the creativity of
the Spirit responding to the needs of the times, other forms arose, for example,
the canons regular, the institutes of religious life, contemplative and
apostolic groups of various kinds (mendicant orders, clerics regular, religious
congregations, both 102 clerical and lay, missionary institutes...). More
recently the church has recognized the form of a consecrated life in the world
which is proper to secular institutes. Related to these forms are the societies
of apostolic life, which are characterized by their specific apostolic and
missionary purposes.

The diversity of forms of consecrated life depend on their nature and
mission, that is, according to the relationship to the mystery and mission of
Christ which each institute lives and proclaims according to the special nature
of each family and which sets it apart with its own distinctive spirituality and
specific apostolate. According to many responses, a great many people wish to
highlight the distinctive charism as a universal key for interpreting one's
whole experience, the practice of the evangelical counsels, one's own
spirituality, apostolate, community life, formation and organization.

The wealth of the variety of forms of the consecrated life is also expressed
in the multiplicity of liturgical rites within the one church of Christ.

Complementarity and the Exchange of Gifts

12. As has been noted, consecrated women far outnumber others within the
consecrated life, both in monastic life and in apostolic religious life, as well
as in missionary service. They bring with them the power of their witness, the
quality of life in communion and the unique potentiality of their mission. Among
the men there are lay institutes composed of brothers alone. Other institutes
are clerical in their foundation and charism; still others are both clerical and
lay in that clerics and laymen belong to them on the basis of the same
consecration and charism and participate in diverse ways in their life,
administration and apostolate, depending on the nature of the institute.

On the basis of a prevalent orientation toward a life dedicated more to
prayer and divine worship or to the explicit spread of the Gospel by word and
work, a distinction is made in the church between institutes dedicated entirely
to contemplation and those devoted to apostolic and missionary activity, even
though the contemplative and apostolic dimension is common to each institute
according to its own charism. Indeed, the institutes of contemplative life are
eminently apostolic, while apostolic institutes order their life on the basis of
their mission in the church so as to be contemplatives in action, in imitation
of Christ.[24]

Certain attention is given to the institutes of consecrated life and
societies of apostolic life of diocesan right which are bound to the service of
the local church. Today such institutes are particularly flourishing in the
younger churches.

Traditional and New Forms

13. The responses make reference to the phenomenon of the flourishing of new
and traditional forms of the consecrated life, offering great hope for the
synod's work.

Consecrated virginity and the order of virgins are the original expression of
a total dedication to Christ in the church since her beginning. Later, however,
the institution of consecrated virgins was absorbed by women's monastic life and
profession. Recently, among the fruits of renewal there is a renewed flourishing
of vocations to virginity in the world through "consecrated virgins"
who, alone or in association with others, dedicate themselves to Christ, their
spouse, and to the service of the church.

In various areas we also see signs of a rebirth of the experience of hermits—priests
and laymen—and also hermitesses, living in solitude or immersed in urban
centers with a special vocation. They devote themselves to the praise of God and
intercession for the salvation of the world. In some areas there can be noted
the existence of "widows" or "widowers" who, either alone or
with others, offer themselves to Christ and the service of the church.

Some responses note that it would be good to promote individual forms of
consecration similar to those already recognized.

Today new forms of the consecrated life are being founded, forms which cannot
be reduced to pre-existing categories. In addition to the profession of the
consecrated life through the evangelical counsels, they ordinarily have some
added characteristics such as the mixed nature of the group made up of both men
and women; renewed forms of participation in the administration of the common
life; flexible structures; and more dynamic organizational features in view of
their mission.

Secular institutes, a form of the consecrated life which has arisen in our
century, are characterized by their consecration in the world or a
"consecrated secularity" lived in the midst of activities which are
typical of lay people. Their manner of professing the evangelical counsels,
their expressions of life in these associations and their apostolate—including
evangelization and witness in the world—differ according to the nature of each
institute. Then too, there are the diverse characteristics of members of secular
institutes, depending on whether they belong to the clergy or laity.

Men's and women's societies of apostolic life, like those of the consecrated
life, are characterized by their being associated for the sake of apostolic and
missionary activity. Though of great merit in the work of evangelization and
mission, they are oftentimes not sufficiently known.

In addition, mention should be made of the presence of groups and communities
which are coming into being or in the process of recognition as institutes of
consecrated life, new forms of consecrated life or societies of apostolic life.

II. Present-Day Circumstances

On the Church's Path

14. The responses gave great importance to analyzing the situation of the
church and of the world today in order to understand the present state of the
consecrated life. Because of its active engagement in the church and its
presence in the world, it has experienced profound changes which can be
understood only in the light of what has happened in recent decades in the
church and society. This period of rapid changes has had a significant effect on
the identity of the consecrated life and its various approaches to apostolic
activity.

First of all, one should note a better understanding of the nature of
consecrated life. It was Vatican Council II which offered to the consecrated
life a theological framework for understanding how it belongs to the church[25]
and the principles for its renewal and adaptation "to the changed
conditions of our time."[26]

The first thing that must be understood about the consecrated life is that it
is a gift from God through the church in the service of humanity and that there
is an urgent need to revitalize the charism at its origin.

Generally it was observed that the council's invitation to renew the spirit
and goal of the foundresses and founders[27] met with a twofold response. On the
one hand, there was a desire for spiritual renewal, with hearts and minds
centered on God, the Blessed Trinity, who is loved above all things and in whose
mystery we find the source of charity. On the other hand, this spiritual renewal
was undertaken with eyes turned toward the women and men of our day who comprise
the world God loved so much that he gave his only Son (cf. Jn. 3:16). Gazing
upon humanity with faith sharpened the ability to "read the signs of the
times and interpret them in the light of the Gospel"[28] in such a way as
to enable the consecrated life to respond to the Lord's call in the necessities
of our times.[29]

This twofold fidelity to God and humanity which must continue to guide the
consecrated life shines forth in a unique way in the person, words and life of
Jesus, the Son of the Father and Son of Man, and remains the way proposed by the
council which will lead to the profound renewal and authentic
<aggiornamento> of the consecrated life.

A Serene Look of Faith

15. The journey marked by the council has been neither direct nor uniform.
Nevertheless, some common elements of judgment deserve to be high lighted. It
has been a fruitful but difficult process in which many efforts have been made.
Renewal was undertaken with enthusiasm, courage and decisiveness, and not
without a share of resistance and failure. The results seem to be still
insufficient and not entirely refined and concentrated. Everyone expects the
synod to offer encouragement on the path opened by Vatican II.

The consecrated life, engaged in the world as it is in the church, has been
subject to the strong influence of the enormous social and cultural changes of
our era, which have become a genuine challenge. Without the eyes of faith to
look upon the present situation of the world and society, it would be difficult
to understand the changes which have occurred as well as the positive results
and the abiding difficulties. Indeed, one approach which has marked the
consecrated life is that of remaining open to the challenges of humanity in our
times.

As in other eras there were moments of fervor and decline, suppression and
restoration, reform and new foundations; so too in our age. The eyes of faith
allow us to keep not only from absolutizing the negative aspects in which a
search for authenticity can often be seen, but also from extolling what is
positive without properly discerning its defects. Only a Gospel discernment,
with eyes focused on the Lord and with attentive listening to his word, will
help to reject whatever is contrary to the good and to seek whatever opens
hearts to salvation so that the will of the Father, who "wills everyone to
be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth" (1 Tm. 2:4), may be
fulfilled. As the responses insist, in the midst of this situation the
consecrated life, because of its total dedication to God and his service, must
have a prophetic presence which in a most profound way proclaims hope, voices
the message of salvation, proclaims the love of God and denounces evil and
infidelity to his covenant of love.

Men and women called to imitate the Master—the members of the institutes of
the consecrated life and societies of apostolic life—know that they have been
chosen from the world, but that they are not of the world (cf. Jn. 15:19), that
is, they know they do not belong to this world, but to Christ, and have been
sent into the world by him to proclaim the Father's love. This justifies the
note made by many of the responses: The consecrated life is held in esteem for
its "works," but its "being" is often not understood; it is
often praised for its involvement in the world, but in some areas—especially
as happens through the mass media—its image is betrayed to the point that
people think it is meaningless. Like Christ, it becomes a sign of contradiction.

Cultural and Social Changes

16. As the responses indicate, it is impossible today to understand the
consecrated life, its tasks and its generous initiatives without taking a
realistic look at the world in which we live.

What are the circumstances in today's world which exercise a positive or
negative influence on the consecrated life and present a context where
consecrated persons ought to live and bear witness to the Gospel?

In this final decade of the 20th century, society is marked by great
technological and scientific progress, even if this is not witnessed everywhere.
Such advances offer great opportunities in today's world. In some ways
positivistic tendencies have been overcome; in other ways there has been the
fall of rationalistic and totalitarian ideologies which limited the horizons of
human existence and claimed to build a world based on the autonomy of reason or
class struggle. However, these tendencies still present themselves in society,
leaving no room for the transcendent.

Today material progress could offer the possibility to improve the condition
of humanity regarding nutrition, education, health care and housing, and to make
earning one's bread a more humane task. However, the poor continue to be poor
and new forms of poverty emerge, while paradoxically it is the poor who often
show a greater sensitivity to the human values which a secular society does not
esteem. Negative symptoms such as extreme nationalism and increased violence are
on the rise.

The means of communication and transportation, which technology now offers,
allow us to think of humanity as one large family which, while respecting
different ethnic identities and cultures, is tearing down the walls of
separation and moving closer toward reconciliation under the gaze of the one
Father of all. The opportunities offered to Catholicism today are great,
responding to the deepest aspirations of the consecrated life. Today we can
think of a world of solidarity where borders do not put people in opposition as
enemies, where the interchange of goods, knowledge and services can assume
global dimensions. A more universal culture—taking into consideration the
relations mentioned above—will also allow all peoples to become actively
involved in the affairs between nations, thereby overcoming a humiliating
dependency, marginalizations of various types and the barriers between North and
South, and rich and poor nations.

In this context—the responses observe—consecrated persons, who in their
missionary activity have in the course of history actually blazed the trails of
communion among peoples, find in today's world through the growing international
character of their institutes a citizenship that is natural to them and witness
the opening of new frontiers to their mission, to their contribution to the
universality of the people of God, to the exchange of gifts among all people and
to the universal reconciliation in Christ.[30]

A Challenging Situation

17. Among the values acquired by society, at least at the theoretical level
and with quite a few contradictions, we find an awareness of the dignity of the
person, the value of human rights, especially the right to life and freedom,
respect of conscience and the right to objective truth. These values, which
reflect the influence of the Gospel of Jesus in human history, have also had
repercussions within the consecrated life, in the manner of understanding its
role and its communal life.

The human sciences such as psychology have given us a better knowledge of the
human person and the ability to treat this human nature in its entirety, with
its weaknesses and strengths.

However, in this humanity in which much hope can be found, sin is also
present, seeking to destroy the Father's plan to make his sons and daughters
authentically human in the light of Christ, the new man. Therefore, it is
necessary that human culture be evangelized at its roots by those who intend to
follow Christ and serve his plan of salvation. Indeed, poverty and injustice
continue to be present in this world. There remains the domination of the few
over the many, not only in some countries dominated by others, but also within a
given society, where side by side we find luxury and poverty, fanaticism and
violence, the scourge of drugs, the loneliness experienced by many people,
disdain for life from the moment of conception, attacks against the family, and
the deterioration of the environment and of creation.

The responses indicate that women and men religious, consecrated persons
living in the world, are not indifferent to these challenges and that they are
working to build a more human world in accord with God's plan.

Sign of Contradiction and Hope

18. The responses also insist on offering a realistic view of today's society
which can help one to understand the most difficult challenges to the
consecrated life, especially in the area of the great values at the basis of
their involvement, and in a special way the threefold counsel and evangelical
charism of chastity, poverty and obedience.

Profound cultural changes have corroded the authentic meaning of sexuality,
the idea of the family and the value of virginity and celibacy. If on the one
hand, a healthy view of human sexuality has contributed to a better appreciation
of the corporal and spiritual integrity of the human person, other trends have
banalized the understanding of it and disrupted its balance. The technological
possibility of separating the unitive and procreative dimensions of sexuality
create grave challenges to the authentic meaning of human life. In the plan of
salvation, voluntary celibacy for the sake of the kingdom and Christian
marriage, in the light of the mystery of Christ the bridegroom and of the
church, by their complementary nature show the power of love which integrates,
gives of itself and is committed. It is the alternative offered by the good news
of love to a sexuality that in its hedonistic expressions confines man and woman
to a fleeting experience, consigning them to loneliness. Fidelity to marriage
and the commitment to celibacy for the sake of the kingdom of heaven are perhaps
more difficult to assume today, but in their complementarity they have become a
privileged sign which must be restored to the project of true love and be seen
as a mutual example of fidelity. Celibacy in particular must be a prophecy of
the future definitive kingdom (cf. Mt. 22:30). However, how can we teach today a
commitment as demanding as that of celibacy?

A liberal economy without any corrective measures has led to the growing
stratification in living conditions resulting in the abandonment of the weak and
the poor, of ethnic minorities, and of the sick and elderly, as often happens in
the poorest of countries. The profit motive in the free-market economy, claimed
to be the only motive for existence and relationships, leads to a moral
relativism, to a culture of efficiency which obscures the sense of a free act of
generosity, of poverty and evangelical simplicity. The organization of civil
life has often offered the bad example of those who seek their own advantage
through the exercise of power. If a culture with these characteristics threatens
the soul of Christian life and the consecrated life itself, it offers those
persons committed to the imitation of the poor Christ the opportunity to live
the Gospel of the Beatitudes and alleviate the suffering of so many people whose
failure to share in progress has left them at the fringes of society. How can a
more credible witness of poverty in today's world be achieved?

Today's insistence in culture on personal autonomy and on fulfillment, as
understood by one's subjective conscience creates difficulties affecting
obedience, the acceptance of traditions, the objective limitations created by
law, sacrifice and the mortification of one's own will for the sake of the
broader common good. Frequently the very idea of solidarity is debased by the
prevalence of an individualistic logic, thus presenting new problems threatening
the meaning of obedience and leading to risks of individualism. At the same
time, through turning from individualism, the situation poses the possibility of
rediscovering the genuine meaning of obedience for love of the Lord and his
kingdom in order to come together in communion and mission, with eyes fixed on
Christ, the Son and obedient servant, and on Mary, the handmaid of the Lord,
called to collaborate in the mystery of salvation.

Today it is difficult for many people to make fundamental and lasting
commitments. There is also a crisis in the idea of vocation and of giving
oneself in a lifelong manner. Some ask if it is possible to consider the
possibility of a consecrated life made for a temporary period of commitment with
a view to more mature choices, as can be found in other forms of religion or
other cultures. The choice of an absolute ideal, and an offering of self to God
and the service of others, is a source of meaning which humanizes and is a gift
of self to humanity. For this reason, persons consecrated to a single ideal,
which does not pass away, are living signs of those transcendent values for
which a person lives and even dies. In our day there is no lack of persons who
have followed Christ to the point of sacrificing their life, rendering through
their martyrdom a sign which is the supreme proof of love.

A World of Communication and Images

19. One characteristic of our times is a culture of images which has become
widespread through the audiovisual media. On the one hand such a culture should
be appreciated for its closeness to Christianity, which seeks to go from the
visible to the invisible through the use of signs and liturgical symbols as
instruments of salvation and elevates humanity through the goods of beauty and
art. However, this culture of images is often turned into a culture of fleeting
and superficial pleasure.

The world of communication also enters into the areas of the consecrated
life. However, those who have chosen God cannot lose the interior quality of a
life which is nourished by contemplation of what cannot be seen with human eyes.
Consecrated persons, in love with God, the All-Beautiful, are called to bear
witness to the beauty which can save the world in celebrating the liturgy, in
harmonious relationships, in promoting what is true, beautiful, good and just.
In the contemplative dimension they can bear witness to and promote the paths
that lead to mystery, which is the origin of everything beautiful, and to the
interiority which gives meaning to daily work.

Material progress often leads to a society in which consumerism becomes an
end in itself. Abandoning the transcendent dimension, it ends up in religious
indifferentism, relativism and secularism. In this case, it is urgently
necessary to regain the true meaning of life and the world which, despite their
beauty aspects, have lost their appeal and mystery.

Vocation and Dignity of Women

20. "The awareness that women, because of their own gifts and tasks,
have their own specific vocation has increased and been deepened in the years
following the council and has found its fundamental inspiration in the Gospel
and in the church's history."[31] This explains the development of a
consciousness concerning consecrated women and their presence in recent decades
in various areas, a phenomenon which coincides with a clarification of
sociological and theological presuppositions, a greater involvement in
interpreting the foundational charisms, a more decisive development in formation
and the assumption of responsibility in the consecrated life. However, adherence
to extreme present-day forms of the feminist movement has led to spiritual
disorientation in the consecrated life in some countries.

Consecrated women in their personal lives and in their work in evangelization
today find themselves at a crossroads of the signs of the times. They recognize
the importance of their contribution to an understanding of the mystery of
Christ and want to make resplendent the countenance of God, the source of new
life. This femininity, which finds its archetype in Mary of Nazareth, is a
clarion call to the whole church. Whenever we think of the mother of Jesus as
the bearer of life and her action of embracing salvation, or of Mary Magdalene
and the other women, the first "evangelists" of the Lord's
resurrection, the role of women in the church can be more deeply understood.
Indeed, "it is quite clear from the words and attitude of Christ, which are
normative for the church, that no discrimination exists on the level of an
individual's relation to Christ, in which 'there is neither male nor female, for
you are all one in Christ Jesus' (Gal. 3:28.)"[32]

Women—including consecrated women—in reciprocity and complementarity with
men, ought to assume all their responsibilities in society and in the church
with the contribution and wealth of their feminine nature. This is an urgent
challenge presented by today's culture. Bishops are called to discern and offer
guidance in all that concerns consecrated women. These confidently look to them
for a helpful word.

Responses and Challenges

21. This assortment of movements and transformations in culture—described
above on the basis of the responses—has an effect on the meaning of
consecrated life for today's men and women as well as for the young people of
this era, who are faced with vocational choices for the future.

Many of the situations already described have had a refining influence on the
consecrated life. Recent decades have witnessed many defections, notable crises
and an acute decline in vocations in some countries. Today the consecrated life
is faced with the task of reformulating the fundamental nature of its
charismatic origins. At the same time, purified from the ambiguous motivations
which in other eras could have had an influence on this choice, it offers the
uncertainties of the human heart the free and generous response leading to the
full realization of persons in their dedication to God through the evangelical
counsels, in communion with the Master and following him, in which is found the
seed of a new humanity, one with greater solidarity, fraternity and joy.

In an era of change such as ours it seems that many people are still
uncertain about what concrete, renewed forms will give meaning to life and will
have the capacity to survive. A whole generation can pass during the time of
uncertainty and searching. However, as many responses affirm, today the
consecrated life has the courage to give itself still to the profession of the
evangelical counsels as a great plan of God offering Christ's faithful—the
women and men of our age—a fullness of meaning and joy rooted in the word and
example of Christ himself.

At a time when utopianism seems to be fading and pragmatism runs the risk of
making society close in upon itself, all Christians—men and women religious,
those who are consecrated in the world and everyone according to their vocation—remind
others that today it is possible to live day by day with the power of hope and
faith. For this very reason the poor, the sick, the little ones and those who
have lost life's meaning can be evangelized and witness around them the rebirth
of hope. Consecrated persons must also bear witness in today's world to that
fullness of joy which Jesus promised his disciples (cf. Jn. 15: 11).

Fruits of Renewal

22. In the midst of this profound cultural change, following the call of the
church, the consecrated life has traveled a path of renewal with lights and
shadows. The responses are in relative agreement in describing positive and
negative aspects as well as in offering signs of hope. A summary of points which
enjoy a certain degree of unanimity will help give an awareness of the path
which lies ahead.

There is sufficient agreement on the positive evaluation of the progress
which has taken place in the theology of the consecrated life in the areas of
Christology, pneumatology and ecclesiology and in the treatment of the
consecrated life as a fruit of the Second Vatican Council in later documents of
the magisterium and in theological discussion and research.

Many responses affirm that in harmony with the church's liturgical renewal in
recent decades, new value has been given in all forms of the consecrated life to
participation in the eucharist and the celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours
and the sacraments. The rites of religious profession themselves have been
renewed. Men and women religious have made a great contribution to the work of
liturgical renewal. Many communities, especially the monastic and contemplative
ones, are points of reference for the celebration of the liturgy and the
promotion of liturgical worship.

Forms of piety have been progressively updated and greater importance has
been given to contemplative prayer. On many occasion today this takes on the
form of shared prayer—shared also with the laity—for a mutual growth in
experiencing God and uplifting each other.

In response to the council,[33] the word of God today is better known, read
and meditated upon. It is found in the hands and hearts of consecrated persons
in the form of <lectio divina,> contemplative meditation and sharing of
the word as it is lived and meditated upon both within and outside the
community. The biblical renewal has been shown to be of decisive value. In the
light of the word there has been a rediscovery and actualization of the charism
of the consecrated life, a better evaluation of its spirituality and a better
knowledge of the centrality of the imitation of Christ in order to be his
disciples and apostles.

The awareness of baptismal consecration as the root of self-giving to God
through the evangelical counsels[34] has created an understanding of the
ecclesiality of the consecrated life and of its proper vocation and mission,
perceiving them with a renewed sense of communion with the other members of the
people of God: bishops, priests, deacons and laity. As a consequence this has
led to a more harmonious and greater engagement of the consecrated life in the
particular churches and a generous participation in the evangelizing mission of
the church.

Seeds of Hope

23. Among the choicest fruits of the council we find a desire to return to
the sources,[35] the rediscovery of charisms, a renewed love for the founders
and foundresses, the study of their writings and of the spiritual tradition of
one's own family, and, in light of charisms, a renewed inspiration of
legislative texts. This re-evaluation of charisms has given in this age new
vitality and vigor to the consecrated life. From this comes a better integration
of spirituality and mission.

Among the results of renewal, the responses frequently highlight the
evangelical option for the poor as a concrete form of sharing in the poverty of
the disadvantaged and of expressing charity toward the little ones, a charity
which was a privileged choice of many founders and foundresses. This has often
allowed the consecrated life to become more actively involved in densely
populated areas and had an influence on a more simple lifestyle and in the
discernment and adaptation of apostolic works. This nearness to the people,
frequently to the marginalized and abandoned, has brought about a growth of
human and evangelical solidarity as well as of a commitment to justice and human
advancement which today are seen as integral aspects of the new evangelization.
Oftentimes, the poor themselves, with their profound sense of God, have
evangelized the women and men religious living among them. Those who live the
consecrated life have been invited by the poor to live a more incarnational
spirituality and to be attentive to history and the signs of the times. This in
turn has fostered an awareness of the dimensions of prophecy and martyrdom and
prompted consecrated persons to take positions in the front lines, even to
risking their lives.

A sign of renewal is the work done by all the institutes in adapting their
proper legislation. This work has required years of reflection, study and
dialogue and has had positive results in the regaining and making relevant
values based on charisms and in making renewed proposals for the legislative
framework which unites and commits all members of institutes.

Mutual esteem among the institutes, reciprocal help, collaboration and
inter-congregational formation programs are also a positive result in recent
decades.

We should value the efforts at renewal at work in the structures and methods
of formation. There is an awareness of the necessity of formation, one that is
spiritual, biblical, theological, pastoral and in some cases even professional.
There is concern to pay greater attention to the person with a view to effective
growth and maturation in all aspects. There is an awareness of the need for
ongoing formation, of training formation personnel and of the role of the
community in the formation process.

The post-conciliar period has also shed light on the necessity of profoundly
renewing the apostolic mission of the institutes, taking into account their
charisms, the needs of the times and concrete situations, and taking a new look
at the works themselves, the style in which they are performed, the possibility
of their continued existence and the places where they are carried out. We can,
however, ask if some institutes' abandonment of certain works in the areas of
the education of children and young people and in the care of the sick has not
impoverished their presence in society and in the church's evangelizing
activity.

The desire of the council, which invited religious and secular institutes to
begin new foundations in the younger churches using a new style of adaptation to
the religious values, culture and needs of people,[36] has developed a sense of
inculturation and its urgency, especially in this moment of grace in which
vocations are flourishing in the younger churches.

The continued attention and guidance of the church's magisterium in recent
decades has been very positive as well as the contribution of some documents
which have been produced by episcopal conferences. This celebration of the Synod
of Bishops, the expressed wish of the Holy Father Pope John Paul II, is a sign
of hope and encouragement for all and an occasion to help the seeds of hope to
grow.

New Forms of Community Life

24. In efforts at renewal, community life has undergone significant changes
in recent decades. The common life, seen from the perspective of poverty
(uniformity in food, clothing and other goods) had led many religious institutes—and
sometimes societies of apostolic life too—to live a rather conventual form of
community life, at times even monastic, without due regard for differences among
institutes by their very nature. The post-conciliar reflection has fostered an
evolution in the understanding of the common life, centered on the dimension of
mystery, based on the theological reality of a life of fraternal communion.

Many institutes of apostolic and missionary life have desired to rethink and
make more flexible their manner of living and their community structures so as
to respond better to their own nature and purpose.

A deeper understanding of the value of the person has been expressed in the
search for more simple relationships among the members of the community, marked
by greater mutual esteem and respect, while giving less emphasis to differences
of a cultural or functional nature. Wherever this has occurred, it has been
easier to create understanding among individuals and a more sincere dialogue
with superiors. Various forms of participation in decision making have come into
being regarding both the internal life of the community and apostolic activity.

In some places the lower number of vocations has created new problems in
community life. On the one hand there are rather large numbers of elderly and
infirm members in the community; on the other hand, the younger generations
desire for a more immediate contact with the people and a special closeness to
the poorest of the poor, has led to the disappearance of large-scale works and
the formation of "small communities based on common interest" formed
by people having the same image of religious life and the same goals for the
apostolate. Although on the positive side this kind of small community has
allowed the members to overcome the anonymity and individualism to which large
communities can too easily contribute, it nevertheless causes a number of
problems, in that it risks creating a type of "corporate
individualism" with respect to the rest of the institute, causing harm to
the unity of the institute.

In the light of the council's directives,[37] the exercise of authority has
been renewed in many places and seen as a service to the spiritual, apostolic
and fraternal revitalization of communities, allowing greater closeness between
superiors and subjects. The responses positively evaluate the shift from a
passive obedience to an obedience of greater dialogue and participation.

Nevertheless, individualism and authoritarianism are always a strong
temptation and are destructive of the life of fraternal communion. The excessive
dependence on former times has sometimes been replaced not by a balanced
participation but by independence under the stimulus of democratic ideas which
are not appropriate to the life of the church and consecrated life. The renewal
of institutes cannot be based on sociology factors, but only on the rediscovery
of the specific nature of the foundational charism. Only in the light of the
theology of the consecrated life in general and of the religious life in
particular can discernment be made as to the validity of the following
experiences or suggestions: "small communities based on common
interests" and so- called "inclusive communities," that is, those
composed of people with vows and without vows, of different ages, cultures and
including lay people—married or single—diocesan clergy, etc.; the dispersion
of communities; communities composed also of members with temporary commitment;
and more democratic methods of participating in administration.

Present Difficulties

25. This broad-based, positive renewal process described above must also be
completed with the list of negative aspects also emerging in the responses. It
is therefore essential to make an objective analysis of the negative phenomena,
which must not always be attributed to the process of renewal. It is important
to note that many of the difficulties have been faced and overcome at a time in
which the consecrated life is advancing toward a new era in its 2,000-year
history, and for which it awaits encouragement and a new thrust.

Many agree in stating that the changes in society and the church have caused
disorientation, fears, insecurity and a lack of balance. There have been
divisions within institutes. There has been a lack of formation toward
legitimate pluralism and dialogue within communities and the church. Tensions
have arisen within institutes and communities, tensions even with the
ecclesiastical hierarchy. Lacking is a pedagogy of change which today has its
effects on consecrated life—also on many social institutions—and has its
roots not only in factors internal to the church, but in the profound cultural
changes in our times.

There is need in these days for a great evangelical discernment in seeking
the Lord's will. Apostolic works have been abandoned without mature
deliberation, and changes were made with greater attention to the structures
than to the spirit which should pervade them. It is not uncommon—the responses
note that a certain type of traditionalism not open to dialogue has created
resistance to the changes, holding as sacred and unchanging certain customs,
forms and works which have come about over the course of time. Sometimes
tensions have arisen because of mutually exclusive concepts, without taking
account of the fact that different lifestyles and apostolic works can be
complementary and that they can support and enrich one another, even within the
same family.

The responses contain other negative evaluations. The openness to the signs
of the times and even the option for the poor have generated in some an
ideological and political choice which has even led to the loss of their own
identity. In some cases the legitimate desire to respond to the signs of the
times and a greater presence in the world has become merely an adaptation, which
has led to the weakening and irrelevancy of the public witness of the
consecrated life, and in extreme cases, to an indiscriminate imitation of the
secularized, conventional culture. Some note to their regret that many men and
women religious have abandoned the sign of the habit proper to their institute.
Others mention that a certain search for comfort has banalized the more genuine
motivation of the evangelical counsels and has weakened the missionary spirit.
For some the fact that some institutes enjoy economic security and possess
collective wealth, in contrast with the poor areas where they live, is seen also
as a lack of an authentic witness of poverty.

Many deplore the lack of balance between prayer and action and the serious
risk of activism. Others note that changes not in conformity with the church's
discipline have been introduced into liturgical celebrations. Many formal
structures of traditional observance which furnished support in the past have
disappeared and have not been replaced by other values. For some people this has
created the lack of a proper personal discipline necessary for confronting new
situations. Many have noted a spiritual vacuum and a loss of the striving toward
transcendent values. Some people hold that this is also due to questions raised
in recent decades in the fields of exegesis, theology and morality, questions
which ate not harmoniously integrated in one's personal search and the option of
faith.

A Testing

26. For many institutes the number of defections and the progressive decline
in vocations has been—and still is—a trial, a genuine test of hope. There is
fear for the survival of many communities and their works because of a lack of
personnel in the near future. In some regions—many of the responses note—young
men and women do not have an appreciation of a vocation to the consecrated life.
But elsewhere there is the danger that in seeking the survival of apostolic
works the necessary rigorous vocational discernment will not be respected. Some
speak about cases of a frantic vocational recruitment of members from the
younger churches, who are then uprooted from their cultural environment.

The responses present many difficulties at the level of formation. It has not
been easy to find formation personnel capable of confronting significant
cultural changes. Frequently, especially in the early moments of the crisis,
those in charge of formation responded more from their own past experience than
to the new needs and requests of young people. It has not been easy to foster
formative processes capable of integrating elements coming, on the one hand,
from a sound sociology and psychology and, on the other, from theology,
spirituality or pastoral ministry. Such an integration is necessary for the
formation of candidates. There was a lack of knowledge on how to combine an
authentic sense of tradition with an openness to new values. Sometimes there was
an excess of psychology or sociology. There was opposition between the urgent
needs of the apostolate and the need for a solid intellectual formation. The
overcoming of excessively formal structures has in some cases produced a crisis
in institutions and forms of consecrated life where strength of character and
conviction is lacking for confronting difficult periods. The exercise of freedom
also requires training in prudence and affective maturity. Adequate means have
not always been found, and the inadequate ones were often the cause of extremes
and defections.

Others note that today's theological and pastoral appreciation of the laity,
if improperly seen as being in opposition to consecrated life and not integrated
into an ecclesiology of communion, leads to a doctrinal and affective
devaluation of the consecrated life by young people. With this improper
understanding the laity, especially those belonging to ecclesial organizations,
are seen as having more opportunities today to express their commitment to the
Gospel.

Many responses emphasize that the improved involvement of the consecrated
life in the local churches has created problems regarding the just autonomy of
institutes. Both parties—bishops and religious alike—note that mutual
relations have not been properly achieved. Several episcopal conferences express
their regret over difficulties in involving men and women religious in the
diocesan apostolate because they are too frequently changed by their superiors.
Others, however, mention that an excessive identification with such an
apostolate, as happens in parishes entrusted to religious, can generate a loss
of their own identity and fidelity to the spirituality and mission of their own
institute.

III. Diverse Situations in Various Geographical Areas

A Diversified Situation

27. The responses from the episcopal conferences reveal a situation which is
diversified according to various cultural and geographical areas. In the
countries of the Northern Hemisphere members of institutes of consecrated life
are aging and decreasing in number. In the countries of the Southern Hemisphere
the opposite is happening; they are becoming younger and more numerous. In
geographic terms there is a shift from North to South and from West to East.

It is a question of a process which brings with it the following: a certain
crisis in tradition and in openness to the new; the loss of uniformity and the
growth of pluralism; the lessening of the significance of the consecrated life
and the number of consecrated persons in some nations; a tendency toward
processes of inculturation; and an increased engagement in local churches as
well as the heightened involvement of members of institutes of consecrated life
in those places where it is growing and becoming rejuvenated.

Such a phenomenon implies an effort to be faithful to the institute's proper
identity and charism and a prudent plan of development, especially in those
countries where it is in its initial stages, albeit very promising from the
point of view of new forms, mission and spirituality.

An awareness of the variety of situations is important so as not to have too
restrictive a vision of the reality of the consecrated life, which is such that
it participates in the universality of the people of God through a presence
expressing a strong sense of the church's catholicity. An important quality of
the consecrated life is its ability to relativize differences and cultural
expressions in a certain manner by highlighting the importance of the
evangelical counsels, which assume and transcend individual values, directing
them toward the one God, the author of all gifts.

Northern Hemisphere

28. In some Western countries, especially in the Northern Hemisphere, there
is the great challenge presented by the aging of persons and the statistical
projections that some institutes will find it difficult to survive. In these
circumstances the number of vocations is insufficient for maintaining
communities and their apostolic work. This situation involves a series of
questions regarding the essential aspects of institutes and their traditional
apostolates, and the dilemma between bold steps in mission or passive
resignation. Some institutes are questioning the sense of their own identity and
survival. In this regard what choices are to be made and what would be the
approach in formation and the work of recruiting new vocations?

Formation in all its phases and forms (initial, ongoing,
inter-congregational, etc.) must face unexpected problems created by a situation
of change for which traditional presuppositions seem to be inadequate. Sometimes
the continuation of apostolic works is not ensured and frequently they are
turned over to the state. Communities which have grown smaller must resolve
economic problems imposed by society and ensure a growing dedication to their
own elderly and infirm members. For persons who do not have the same spiritual
youth they once had, ongoing formation becomes the challenge of an authentic
conversion. Living their own vocation means facing the present moment with
enlightened responses.

In European nations the consecrated life is called to respond to questions
posed by the new culture and to be active in reweaving the Christian fabric of
society. This is to be done with a courageous presence and confidence in the
spiritual resources of its charisms, which are communicated in wisdom and works
so as to make the spiritual and apostolic witness more incisive and effective
where the number of persons and works is in decline.

Some responses ask for a proper evaluation of the situation in some regions
like North America where local conditions present challenges to the consecrated
life in culture, society and the church. Equal opportunity for education for all
has increased women's role in academic and administrative responsibilities, and
consequently leads to a greater openness to their responsibility in the church
and a positive appreciation of the traditions of freedom to speak, to express
oneself and to act. Differences in the perception of the value of the structure
and forms of consecrated life have made dialogue difficult and created a marked
division between opposing tendencies in how to interpret renewal. Furthermore,
the problems posed by immigration in recent decades do not seem to have received
an adequate response of acceptance and mission within the consecrated life.

In the nations of Eastern Europe, especially in those which have only
recently had a taste of freedom, vocations are flourishing. However, it is not
easy to provide for a proper formation. Many women and men religious have lived
alone for so long it is difficult for them to return to community living. For
others who have been involved in parish ministry, it is important to make a
return to their specific apostolate for the good of the particular churches. The
consecrated life can perform important tasks in ecumenical dialogue and in the
process of re-evangelization and of the promotion of culture in such a way as to
reweave the anthropological and social fabric of society, which was so seriously
damaged by the totalitarian regimes.

A courageous contribution is awaited on the part of consecrated persons to
the new evangelization, a cultural reawakening and a spiritual renewal which can
oppose the weakness of philosophical thought, moral permissiveness,
dissatisfaction with consumerism and the dissolution of the Christian which can
lead to an impersonal piety or recourse to the sects.

Southern Hemisphere

29. In some geographical areas of the Southern Hemisphere vocations abound
and new religious institutes are flourishing. The younger churches are blessed
with many vocations, although in some areas there is a certain decrease. It is
not easy to ensure an adequate formation for a future different from that known
to the missionaries who fostered the birth of the consecrated life in these
nations. Some episcopal conferences ask that vocations not be uprooted from
their cultural and ecclesial environment, at least not in the early years of
formation.

In the responses greater emphasis was given to inculturation and dialogue
with other religious traditions. Great importance was given, as a factor of
unity, to the witness borne by consecrated persons of different nationalities
who live and fulfill their mission together.

In Africa the consecrated life is asked to make better use of traditional
elements such as respect for the elderly and ancestors, the importance of
hospitality and the possibility of helping one's own family members. What is
required is a capacity to be rooted in the wisdom of the peoples, in the
pedagogical processes of initiation and personal growth, and in liturgical
inculturation. Those who give themselves to God must live in harmony with the
demands of asceticism, prayer and charity. Sometimes people cannot see the
witness of poverty when consecrated persons live with a certain amount of
security while the people around them suffer from need. The consecrated life
should give an example of a simple life, a commitment in daily work,
participation in processes for transforming society and a more harmonious
involvement in small communities. There is a strong need to continue patiently
in interreligious dialogue, especially between Christians and Muslims, even if
significant difficulties are presented by the influence of sects, with whom
dialogue is difficult.

Asia, with its nations of great size and population, is the cradle of some of
the great religions of the world and the continent where Christianity still has
relatively few followers. The responses highlight the role played in the past by
institutes of consecrated life and many societies of apostolic life of
missionary character and the importance of their presence in the future for
proclamation and interreligious dialogue. Common witness to the values of the
great religions is necessary so as to make interreligious dialogue progress with
a simple and profound life, a shared spiritual outlook and compassion for all.
In some nations vocations abound. Consecrated persons have the opportunity to
encounter others through social institutions such as hospitals, schools and
clinics which allow them to come in contact with many people who are not reached
through parish activities. In some nations economic development is accompanied
by organized groups which exploit women and force children to work and,
unfortunately, to take part in vice. The consecrated life can do much to help
the poor liberate themselves from some of these conditions which frequently
reveal the loss of traditional values because of the spread of materialism. The
presence of forms of contemplative consecrated life fosters a testimony on
behalf of the Absolute and promotes interreligious dialogue. An important
challenge to consecrated life for the immediate future is the assumption of
positions of administration within institutes by native persons.

In the Middle East, the cradle of Christianity and of ancient monasticism,
there are relatively few followers of the consecrated life. Nevertheless, these
persons have a particular mission of presence, communion with other Christian
churches, and the witness of prayer and charity toward non-Christians.

Men and women religious form an important part of the church in Latin
America, where vocations are relatively numerous. Their role in evangelization
has been decisive. In recent decades, attentiveness to people's suffering and
closeness to those in processes of change have caused religious to be in the
vanguard of the cause of justice on behalf of the poor, of indigenous peoples
and of the marginalized. Many of them have paid for their involvement with their
life. A well-understood theology of liberation and attention to the analysis of
social structures from the point of view of a faith vision have helped—and
continue to help—consecrated persons to hear the cry of the poor. In some
circumstances there have been tensions between religious and bishops. The
dialogue recently undertaken with greater vigor is promising. An important
challenge is the presence and greater responsibility of native vocations to the
consecrated life. Apostolic activity has been hampered by the sects, while the
mass media have an enormous impact on the creation of a mass culture, which is
quite different from the traditional human and religious mentality of the Latin
American people. The magisterium of John Paul II and the meeting of the Latin
American episcopate in Santo Domingo recently offered some valuable guidelines
for the future of the consecrated life in Latin America.[38]

For some countries of Oceania and the Pacific the emergence of new nations is
posing problems similar to those in Africa. The responses indicate that at such
times the key is what form of inculturation to be proposed in the new
evangelization. Other responses mention the need to promote forms of
contemplative life which are closer to the people.

IV. Specific Question

A Key for Interpretation

30. The majority of responses make reference to the state of the institutes
of apostolic religious life—both for men and for women—already amply
presented above. Yet many responses seem to ignore the existence of various
forms of consecrated life and the specific problems related to them. A complete
treatment of the consecrated life, however, demands that we take into account
some specific problems concerning certain forms of the consecrated life—and
forms assimilated to it—not in order to exclude other realities, but to look
at some meritorious aspects in the context of a universal vision of the church
which does not ignore forms of consecrated life that may be less significant in
size but no less deserving of proper attention.

Institutes of Contemplative Life

31. Numerous are the responses which concern the institutes of contemplative
life. From them emerges the church's esteem for this type of life, which
manifests with an apostolic fruitfulness the primacy of God, the dimension of
prayer, asceticism and charity in fraternal communion. Many bishops express
their gratitude for the gift of such oases of prayer; and many others would like
to have them in their own dioceses. The contemplative life continues to
flourish. In the future, expectations call for fidelity to its proper vocation
according to the guidelines of the magisterium.[39]

The responses offer some specific questions coming directly from monasteries
of women or proposed through episcopal conferences.

Some groups express their attachment to the traditional values of enclosure
and ask that these be confirmed. Others ask that particular attention be given
to the forms of contemplative life for women so that, while respecting
individual charisms, suitable legislation be drawn up regarding enclosure to
promote communication and to facilitate a proper formation.

Although many people still choose the contemplative life, the vocation to
this type of life is frequently not understood, not even by priests and the
faithful. In present-day circumstances insistence is placed on the need for a
solid initial and ongoing formation following the church's directives.[40] This
formation would be in Scripture, theology, liturgy and spirituality, in
conformity with the kind of life to be led and according to the proper charism
of the contemplative life.

Many monasteries demonstrate an openness to the needs of the universal and
local churches and an active participation in the life of the diocese in which
they are harmoniously engaged, as well as in their own spiritual family.
However, some of them appear isolated and removed from authentic participation
in the life of the church.

Many responses express the desire that through associations and federations a
suitable balance might be achieved between promoting growth in communion and
collaboration and respecting autonomy.

Many episcopal conferences express some of the following desires: that the
contemplative life have a more visible presence in the local church; that it be
a model of liturgical life and prayer; that it bear testimony to the primacy of
God; and that it offers warm hospitality according to its proper tradition. In
this way the monasteries can be spiritual oases where priests, seminarians,
religious and lay people can restore their spirit and find spiritual energy.
Their presence is particularly appreciated in the younger churches where they
recall the council's invitation to adapt in proper fashion to the authentically
religious traditions of diverse peoples.[41]

The monks and nuns of both East and West are asked, in fidelity to their
liturgical and cultural traditions, to make their monasteries centers of
spiritual outreach, of hospitality for the people of our day in the search for
God and, according to their own traditions, true laboratories of thought and
culture for today's world.

Religious Institutes, Lay Brothers

32. Particular attention is given to the vocation and mission of lay brothers
in the lay institutes and in clerical institutes as well as in those which
embrace clerics and lay brothers.

Many people overlook the fact that by its very nature the consecrated life is
neither clerical nor lay, and that it was predominantly lay in its origin,
especially in the East. They have the impression that the vocation of the lay
brother is incomplete in that it lacks the priesthood.

The responses ask that, following the magisterium,[42] there be a
reaffirmation of the value, fullness and importance of the lay religious life,
both in lay institutes and in clerical and mixed ones. Indeed, such a form of
consecrated life is a full expression of religious consecration and the common
priesthood of the baptized. The presence of lay brothers in a community is an
expression of fellowship in Christ. Furthermore, the various lay
"ministries,"[43] both internal and external to the community, when
exercised in accordance with the charism of each institute, are a participation
in the ministerial nature of the church for the spread of the Gospel throughout
the world. Above all, through consecrated chastity lay brothers are a sign of
the presence of the kingdom and of the values which transcend all fleeting
things.

It is desirable that lay brothers be given an integral formation: human,
theological, pastoral and professional.

The synod is asked to resolve the question of the lay brothers' participation
in the administration of clerical institutes and those with clerics and lay
brothers in such a manner that this might be regulated by the particular
legislation of individual institutes, with due respect for their nature and
tradition.

It is hoped that, in communion and collaboration, the sharing of the
spirituality of lay congregations with lay associates might be promoted without
jeopardy to their identity.

Secular Institutes

33. By the profession of the evangelical counsels, members of secular
institutes express and realize their consecration in apostolic activity and,
like leaven, seek to permeate every reality with a Gospel spirit in order to
strengthen the body of Christ and help it grow. Their specific character,
following the documents <Provida Mater Ecclesia> and <Primo Feliciter>
of Pius XI, is outlined by the Second Vatican Council, by canonical legislation,
as well as by other magisterial interventions of Paul VI and John Paul II.[44]
The responses emphasize the lasting value of these documents with regard to
their identity and mission, and also in light of the new evangelization.

Combining a secular nature and consecration creates a new melding of the
presence of the Gospel and of the church in society, providing a great ability
in adapting to the new demands arising from social, cultural, political and
economic life. Making Christ and the secular dimension of the church present in
the world, the members of these institutes, inspired by a Gospel outlook, are an
example to lay people in the workplaces, combining the faith and a life of
consecration with a typically secular mission. The <consecratio mundi>
should begin and find its desired fulfillment from within the very lives of the
members of secular institutes, all through a spirituality characterized by their
presence in secular structures.

There is no distinction of clerical members of secular institutes from other
clerics, nor are the lay members distinct from other lay people in their
external life. Their special nature lies in their profession of the evangelical
counsels in the world done in a multiplicity of ways and exercised with a
spiritual and apostolic emphasis proper to each institute's charism.

The responses emphasize the necessity of giving full value to this vocation
which is in deep harmony with the situation of today's society. At the same time
the responses mention that it should be clearly distinguished from the religious
and lay vocations. They point out the necessity of defining a specific
spirituality and fostering an adequate formation so that persons might be
prepared to face the difficult pioneering tasks which are theirs. Where the
lifestyle depends on each institute, the members should not be deprived of the
support of a manner of living which can promote communion and vocational growth.

Many responses ask for a better explanation of the specific vocation of their
members, which is different from that of religious and lay people, and their
specific participation in the church's evangelizing mission. Others emphasize
the great value of their apostolate in society and the church. Some note the
great opportunities enjoyed by the consecrated laity in working in ecumenical
and interreligious dialogue, and in drawing near to those who have grown
distant. Some exhibit some difficulty in acting as leaven within society through
their witness and in becoming engaged in the diocesan or parish ministry because
of the discrete and private nature of their vocation. Others ask for a
clarification, according to the various charisms, of their direct participation
in evangelization as a realization of the priestly, prophetic and kingly office
of all the baptized.

Finally, some express the desire for a clarification of the nature of
clerical secular institutes and their specific character in relation to lay
secular institutes.

Consecrated Virgins and Widows

34. Various responses speak about consecrated virgins, pointing out that
their number is growing in the church due to the special nature of their
consecration, the simplicity and adaptability of their structure, and the
flexibility of canon law regarding their members and associations.

Consecrated virgins are "sacred persons" with a particular emphasis
on the mystical espousal with the Lord and manifest publicly Christ's union with
the church. The Rite of Consecration of Virgins clearly expresses the meaning of
their vocation in the light of tradition and the special circumstances of our
times. Their charism implies a total gift of self to Christ and presupposes the
observance of the evangelical counsels according to the various individual or
associative forms of life[45] and through explicitly stated norms which take
into account their specific ecclesial service.

The consecrated virgins' participation in the church's public prayer and the
character of their spiritual makeup render them particularly suitable for
performing service within the church. The church, while seeing to their proper
formation, accepts their vocation and consecration, and counts on their mission.
Depending on their vocation and preparation, they are called to work in the
church's institutions and collaborate in the fields of culture and society, or
participate in the church's mission in bearing witness and spreading the Gospel.
Their model is Mary, the mother of Jesus, in her virginal consecration, her
spiritual motherhood and her dedication to the service of the Lord and his
church.

At present there is special need of criteria for developing more fully the
specific norms for individual consecrated virgins and associations, and for
maintaining their specific nature and better delineating their vocation and
mission. The bishops, upon whom consecrated virgins depend, are also asked to
make a realistic study of how to meet spiritual and temporal needs of these
consecrated persons, especially of those who are not in associations with
others.

Some responses ask if a similar type of personal consecration for men should
not be encouraged.

Likewise, the church recognizes the status of widows who publicly profess
chastity in the world.[46] Various responses refer to consecrated widows and to
a special rite of blessing for widows and the existence of groups of consecrated
widows. In all these cases it is a question of individuals who make a public
consecration of their state in order to give new life to their baptismal
vocation through the vow of perpetual chastity. In this way they express their
desire to live in a spirit of poverty and obedience in order to be signs of the
kingdom of God and to devote themselves to prayer and the service of the church.

The synod is asked to keep in mind the vocation of persons to the order of
widows, as ancient as the church yet today undergoing a rebirth, so as to
further clarify the diversity to be adopted in undertaking the evangelical
counsels, the manner of preparing for public profession and the type of
relationship to one's family.

Hermits (Men and Women)

35. The church acknowledges the existence of anchorites or hermits in both
East and West, even though there is a difference in the idea behind their
vocation.

In the Eastern churches the eremitical vocation is lived within monasteries
and regulated by special norms and by dependence on a superior or on the bishop
if the hermit lives outside the monastery. It is permitted, however, to
constitute by particular law other types of ascetics who imitate the eremitical
life, both within institutes of consecrated life or outside of them.[47] In the
Latin church the hermit is recognized as being dedicated to God in the
consecrated life if by vow or other sacred bond he publicly professes the three
evangelical counsels in the presence of the diocesan bishop and observes his own
norm of life under the bishop's guidance.[48]

The responses confirm a flourishing of this vocation and the existence of
many hermits—both clerics and laymen, women and men—who live in solitude, in
monasteries, in hermitages or even in the midst of people. Some religious
institutes and monasteries admit the possibility of the eremitical life or the
temporary choice of this experience. In this vocation many see a sign of the
encounter between the cultures of the East and the West, a form of spiritual
ecumenism and a new, concrete expression of total dedication to the praise of
God and to penance for the salvation of the world.

In regard to hermits, there is an urgent need to clarify the conditions for
accepting them, the process of discerning this vocation, and the necessary
formation and spiritual guidance, as well as the way in which they become an
active part of the particular churches. Possibilities should also be
investigated to ensure their participation in the eucharist if they are not
priests.

Societies of Apostolic Life

36. Societies of apostolic life, both of women and of men, are comparable
(<accedunt>) to institutes of consecrated life but are different from them
and from other forms of consecrated life in that the basis of their identity is
not that of consecration through the profession of the evangelical counsels but
the full realization of the grace of baptism, and in case of the priesthood
through their proper apostolic ministry. They live their own style of fraternal
life in community and tend to the perfection of charity through the observance
of the constitutions approved by the Holy See or the bishop, as the case may be.
There are, however, societies whose members assume the evangelical counsels by
some special bond defined by the constitutions.[49] The Code of Canons of the
Eastern Churches admits of the existence of societies of common life
"<ad instar religiosorum.>"[50]

In the history of the church many societies of apostolic life have achieved
renown due to their apostolic dedication, their contribution to the mission
<ad gentes> and their founding of many younger churches which are
flourishing today. The responses often note that they are not known well enough
and that their specific identity is not clearly understood.

The societies of apostolic life are experiencing problems similar to those of
the institutes of the consecrated life, especially in their confrontation with
the secularization of traditions and the small numbers in vocations in certain
countries. Nevertheless, the call to the new evangelization and the particular
vocation to the mission <ad gentes> naturally dispose these societies to a
generous contribution to the new springtime of the Gospel which the church is
beginning today with great hope.[51]

New Communities and Revitalized Forms of Evangelical Life

37. Many responses express the need to offer some clarifications about the
new forms of evangelical life which have been springing up and becoming
established in various places in recent decades. The renewal of all the people
of God is brought about by the Spirit through the reinvigorating of the forms of
life that already exist and through raising up new ones in the course of history
in response to the needs of the church.

The forms tested throughout history transmit the church's spiritual heritage
to new forms, which through their birth and development communicate to them in
turn a Gospel freshness and a missionary thrust.

A primary discernment is necessary, consisting in weighing whether or not the
new forms are in continuity with what is essential to the consecrated life
through the profession of the evangelical counsels. Another aspect to be
clarified is whether or not it involves groups of evangelical life which fit
into one of the existing canonical forms. If new groups fit into already
sanctioned forms, according to the original inspiration of the founders, they
are approved as such. It would then be a question not of new forms, but of new
institutes or societies.

The problem arises concerning those groups which, although having a great
variety of expressions, are marked by a lack of uniformity in their composition
such as: groups of men and women; groups where some members profess the
evangelical counsels, even perpetually, while others do not; groups in which
some live in apostolic communities, others in communities of a monastic type and
still others who live alone in a form of consecration in the world; and groups
where some are admitted to sacred orders. In some of these groups there are also
families, some of whom live together while others do not. They all depend on a
single president or moderator, although as a whole the entity is expressed in
various branches with different persons in authority. As to the style of
evangelical life, they are often characterized by strong austerity, intense
prayer, the restoration of sound forms of traditional devotion, the
participation of all in domestic and manual labor, simple relationships and a
limited number of members. The apostolate of such groups is for the most part
the following: a missionary outreach to those who are "separated" and
those who have never received the Gospel; involvement in the "new
evangelization"; ecumenical openness; closeness to the poor and the
marginalized of every kind; and active involvement in parish structures.

Although expressed in a variety of ways, the inspiration which unites them
requires a unity which is not only spiritual but structural as well. Therefore
it would be a restriction of their nature and charismatic newness if canonical
approval as separate entities were to be given to the various branches or
sectors in accordance with previously sanctioned juridical forms. It would be
like dismembering a body. Thus the question must be clarified as to whether
these groups want to be recognized as a new form of the consecrated life[52] or
as associations of the faithful with the character of an ecclesial movement.

Toward New Forms of Consecrated Life?

38. The Apostolic See alone can institute a new form of the consecrated
life.[53] At this time it is necessary to examine if the experience of recent
decades is sufficient to lead the Roman pontiff to institute new forms of
consecrated life in the church so that such groups may have a clear discipline
and the bishops can be helped in their discernment about them. It must be taken
into consideration that only those who assume all three evangelical counsels can
be considered members of an institute of consecrated life, while the others—married
or single—who assume only a bond of obedience and share property and life in
common can be considered associates with some degree of a bond as specified in
the constitutions.

There exist similar associations, however, such as ecclesial movements, which
do not want to be recognized as a form of the consecrated life, although they
have members who assume the evangelical counsels by some form of bond, including
a perpetual one. These can receive recognition as associations of the faithful,
but with their own statutes, and under a form still to be specified, because the
variety of their members requires the involvement of various dicasteries.[54]

In the forms of consecrated life which the church recognizes as such, the
intervention of ecclesial authority determines and mediates the act of assuming
the evangelical counsels and therefore their care and discipline.[55] From this
it follows that these forms do not depend solely on the constitutions of the
specific institute. In the other forms of "consecration of life,"
however, the discipline of the evangelical counsels is determined instead by the
statutes of the association, with the church's intervention more or less
decisive depending on whether the association is a private or public one.

Finally, some responses ask about the possibility, the opportuneness and the
conditions for the church's specific recognition of a stable form of consecrated
life for married people according to the evangelical counsels.

V. A Renewed Theology

In the Light of Vatican II

39. In the wake of Vatican II many responses ask for a confirmation of the
doctrinal lines of the consecrated life in the light of the church's mystery,
communion and mission, so as to highlight its characteristic Christological and
ecclesial nature, the variety of charisms and its specific identity in relation
to the hierarchy and the laity.

The theology of the consecrated life, following the observations of the
fathers and authors both medieval and modern, has found in our era its best
expression in the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church <Lumen Gentium>
which, placing the mystery of communion at the center of the church's
attention,[56] inserted in it the chapter on religious[57] and authoritatively
taught as had never been done before that "the state of life which is
constituted by the profession of the evangelical counsels—while not entering
into the hierarchical structure of the church—belongs undeniably
(<inconcusse>) to her life and holiness."[58] The consecrated life
can be understood only in the light of the mystery of the church, and the church
cannot be fully understood without the consecrated life.

Placing the consecrated life within the mystery of the church, the Second
Vatican Council proposed anew the call to follow Christ according to the
evangelical counsels[59] and delved deeper into the meaning of consecration in
the light of baptism.[60] It stressed how it belongs totally to the mystery of
the church in the one call to holiness and to the mission of the people of God,
and is in communion with the hierarchy and the laity. It emphasized its
charismatic sense and the multiplicity of forms which can be traced back to some
of Jesus' actions, his teachings or aspects of his mystery and the church's
mission.[61] It shed light on the eschatological meaning of religious profession
as a radiant sign for the entire people of God,[62] recalled the humanizing
value of the counsels because whoever follows Christ, the perfect man, becomes
more human.[63] In an original synthesis Vatican II rediscovered the dimension
of the founding charism and reminded institutes to return to the sources and
adapt to the changed conditions of the times.[64]

A Renewed Theological Vision

40. Currently the theology of the consecrated life, in keeping with the
documents of the magisterium, is shedding light on the following new evangelical
values: evangelical realism in the imitation of Jesus of Nazareth; attention to
the pneumatological dimension; the prophetic role of the consecrated life; the
relationship to human advancement and justice; the specific presence and mission
of the consecrated woman in society and the church, called to the new
evangelization; and the challenge of inculturation.

While confirming the essential, sure and constant factors emphasized by the
church's magisterium, a historical view of the theology of the consecrated life
cannot fail to be open to the Spirit's many requests to renew the charisms and
raise up new ones according to the necessities of salvation history, drawing
from the inexhaustible wealth of the Gospel and the mystery of Christ, who is
its foundation and ever living source.

Consecrated life is fully understood in the light of the church as mystery
springing from the Trinity, in the church as communion with God and all of
humanity, and in the church as mission which is the revelation and communication
of the Trinity for the salvation of the world. Indeed, the consecrated life,
which "is a special way of sharing in the sacramental nature of the people
of God,"[65] is rooted in the vocation which comes from the Father, in the
following of Christ and in adherence to his love in the consecration of the
Spirit.

Its charisms and the life of its members are fully seen in the diverse,
relational and complementary nature of the vocations and ministries which are
proper to the ecclesiology of communion in the one body[66] and which are
expressed in the "communion of saints" toward which they tend.
Finally, the consecrated life is fully realized in the mission of the church,
which extends through time and space the mission of Christ and of the Spirit for
the total fulfillment of the kingdom of the Father. The charism of the
consecrated life is like a reflection of the Trinitarian mystery, and the
variety of its gifts tends to mutual communion and to mission. For this reason
it belongs to the full catholicity of the people of God, and the exchange of
gifts in that people of God is brought about in part by those who, "in
tending to sanctity by the narrower way, stimulate their brothers by their
example" and by their missionary presence help to draw together in Christ
all of humanity and its resources.[67]

From this view flows the need for a comprehensive expression which includes
the consecrated life in the mystery, communion and mission of the church. These
three aspects are difficult to separate. Even if one tries to illustrate them in
succession, one after the other, the distinction of one from the other would be
inadequate.

II. CONSECRATED LIFE IN THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST AND OF THE CHURCH

I. In the Mystical Body

Sacramental and Charismatic Dimension of the Church

41. The kingdom of God is a kingdom of grace whose law is charity and in
which gratuitousness is the basis of justice and peace. Among the gifts of the
kingdom of Christ the "first gift to those who believe" is the Holy
Spirit, who makes us children of God and unites us in a single body (cf. Rom. 8:
15-17; Gal 4:47). The Holy Spirit has enriched the church from the very
beginning with hierarchical and charismatic gifts to enable her to accomplish
her mission in the world. Indeed, "it is not only through the sacraments
and the ministrations of the church that the Holy Spirit sanctifies the people,
leads them and enriches them with his virtues. Allotting his gifts according as
he wills (cf. 1 Cor. 12:11), he also distributes special graces among the
faithful of every rank. By these gifts he makes them fit and ready to undertake
various tasks and offices for the renewal and upbuilding of the
church."[68]

In the church "there are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same
Spirit; there ate different forms of service, but the same Lord; there are
different workings but the same God who produces all of them in everyone"
(1 Cor. 12:4-6). Paul explains this diversity as follows: "Some people God
has designated in the church to be, first, apostles; second, prophets; third,
teachers; then come mighty deeds; then gifts of healing, assistance,
administration and varieties of tongues" (1 Cor. 12:28). Everything comes
from Christ and all is oriented toward him: "And he (Christ) gave some as
apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and
teachers, to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the
body of Christ" (Eph. 4:11-13).

In the body of Christ all the members—pastors, lay people and religious—participate
each in their own way in the sacramental nature of the church, which has its
roots in baptism and its summit in the eucharist. All are called to holiness and
mission.[69]

The consecrated life has an essentially ecclesial dimension in relation to
the hierarchy in that through the ministry of her pastors the church not only
establishes this state, but also through her action she presents it as
consecrated to God.[70] Moreover, it is the bishops, the members of the
episcopal college in communion with the Roman pontiff, who wisely regulate in
solidarity the practice of the evangelical counsels and authentically approve
the rules which are proposed. The mission of institutes of the consecrated life
and societies of apostolic life is nothing other than a participation in the
church's mission performed in communion with her pastors and in fidelity to the
spirit of the founders and foundresses.[71]

A proper ecclesiological approach could lead to a better understanding of the
consecrated life in its evangelical and sacramental roots, in its organic
communion and the unity of its mission.

Charism of the Consecrated Life in the Church

42. When the New Testament texts speak of charisms (cf. 1 Cor. 12:8-10,2830;
Rom. 12:6-8) we do not find the terminology which allows us an expression of the
vocation and mission today recognized as the consecrated life. However, in them
we find the roots of the charisms as they were lived at that time. Indeed, among
the charisms virginity is proposed with special emphasis. According to the words
of Jesus (cf. Mt. 19:11-12) and Paul (cf. 1 Cor. 7:7), it is a gift from on high
and an eminent grace in the church. Other charisms of the apostolic community
are gifts for serving the Lord and the brethren, which today are expressed in
the life and mission of institutes of consecrated life and societies of
apostolic life.

The Second Vatican Council did not explicitly use the term charism to
designate the consecrated life, but recognized in it the character of a gift
which is attributed to celibacy and to the evangelical counsels. The consecrated
life is the result of the action of the Spirit and belongs to the holiness,
beauty and fertility of the church.[72]

Paul VI spoke explicitly of the "charism of the religious life ...
(which) is the fruit of the Holy Spirit, who is always at work within the
church" and specifically of the "charisms of your founders who were
raised up by God" as well as the "charisms of the
institutes."[73]

In the period following the Second Vatican Council, the consecrated life has
been studied, understood and lived in this light in a particular manner. A
considerable portion of the effort of spiritual and apostolic renewal has been
made beginning with a return to the original charisms, in dialogue with the
needs of our age, but without being conformed to the world (cf. Rom. 12:2). In
this light the consecrated life is understood in its unity and diversity as well
as in its communion and missionary dynamism. The diversity of charisms allows
the expression of different styles of community life and apostolate in the one
mission. It permits the witness of different spiritual traditions, styles of
community and structures of government. Participation in a collective charism
contributes to a better formation for its members, produces a greater
cohesiveness in the community and shapes the identity of an institute and the
sense of belonging to a spiritual family. It is a source of creativity and
readiness to respond to new circumstances in the human family.

The Gospel as Root and Norm

43. "The teaching and example of Christ provide the foundation for the
evangelical counsels of chaste self-dedication to God, of poverty and of
obedience. The apostles and fathers of the church commend them as an ideal of
life, and so do her doctors and pastors. They therefore constitute a gift of God
which the church has received from her Lord and which by his grace she always
safeguards."[74] The consecrated life has its roots in the very mystery of
Christ and in the Gospel.[75] It is not a question of a historic ecclesial
experience only. In its sum total—even though specific individual expressions
be lacking—the consecrated life is a reality rooted in revelation and
belonging to the church, a precious gift from her bridegroom and savior.

The following of Christ according to the Gospel is the fundamental norm of
the consecrated life.[76] It is the highest rule, according to the famous
expressions of medieval tradition: "There is but one first and principal
rule among the rules of faith and salvation from which all the others derive,
like rivulets, from a single source, that is, the holy Gospel";[77]
"to observe the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, living in obedience,
without property and in chastity";[78] "to live in obedience to Jesus
Christ and serve him with a pure heart and good conscience";[79] and
"to be a soldier of Christ beneath the standard of the cross and serve the
one Lord and his bride, the church."[80] Christ is the center of the
consecrated life according to the admonition of the Benedictine Rule: "Put
absolutely nothing before Christ."[81]

The Gospel of Christ and Christ himself, the living good news of the Father,
is always the foundation of every life consecrated to God and the inexhaustible
treasure from which, under the action of the Spirit, the founders and
foundresses draw their inspiration and life. All their experiences are rooted in
the words and example of the Master. The following of Christ is a commitment to
be lived and proclaimed in such a way that in its totality and in the variety of
vocations the Gospel of Jesus Christ shines forth in the world. In its every
form the consecrated life seeks to live a message, an example and a mystery of
the incarnate or glorious life as the whole in a fragment. However every charism
is rooted in the following of Christ and every gift of self to him, just as
every aspect of his life is inseparable from his person. The charisms of the
consecrated life cannot be separated from the following of Christ and the gift
of consecration.

Primitive monastic literature seems to be a reinterpretation of the
experience in the light of the Gospel or a living exegesis of the Scriptures in
the light of the experience of the monks, for example, the <Life of St.
Anthony,> written by St. Athanasius.[82] The reading of the Gospel and then
of the New and Old Testaments has always been the great inspiration, the first
rule of life. Discipleship, which seeks to imitate Christ and to live out in a
particular fashion some of his words, appeared gradually under the influence of
the Holy Spirit like a Gospel manifested in time and space, a majestic Christ
made present in the church through the charisms of the saints.

Illustrating the doctrine of the church as the mystical body of Christ, Pius
XII first explained the ecclesial meaning of the variety of charisms: "Just
as Jesus Christ wants the individual members to be like him, he wants the whole
body of the church to be so.... When she embraces the evangelical counsels, the
church reproduces in herself the poverty, obedience and virginity of the
Redeemer. Through the multiple and diverse institutions adorning her like so
many jewels, in a certain sense she shows forth Christ in contemplation on the
mountain, preaching to the people, healing the sick and wounded, calling sinners
back to the right way and doing good to all."[83] This text was later taken
up by Vatican II. Through the charisms of the consecrated life the church sees
to it that Christ is shown forth with ever-increasing clarity to believers and
unbelievers alike, "Christ in contemplation on the mountain, or proclaiming
the kingdom of God to the multitudes, or healing the sick and maimed and
converting sinners to a good life, or blessing children and doing good to all,
always in obedience to the will of the Father who sent him."[84]

A Gospel Manifested in Time

44. The history of the consecrated life, in the unity of its inspiration,
shows that throughout the centuries the emphasis has been placed on various
aspects of the one Gospel of Christ, with particular reference to the needs and
cultural conditions of the age. The primitive expressions are related to
essential aspects of the Gospel such as following Christ, imitating him,
remaining with him (cf. Mt. 19:16-26; Mk. 3:13), and total dedication to him in
the assumption of virginity for the sake of the kingdom (cf. Mt. 19: 11). Other
expressions are bound up with the reality of the Word and with participation in
the paschal mystery of Christ, such as the evangelical "conversion" of
mentality and behavior (<conversio morum>) (cf. Mk. 1:15), the call to
live one's baptism fully as a (nuptial) covenant with God, and as a profession
and covenant of faith with Christ (<pistis-foedis, homologhia pros Theon>).[85]
It requires imitation and communion with his life, according to the evangelical
counsels, obedience and service to Jesus Christ, the Lord and Master, adherence
to his person with an undivided heart (cf. 1 Cor. 7:32-34), the determined
choice to serve his kingdom (cf. Mt. 19:21 and 29) and the choice of the Gospel
beatitudes as one's way of life.

New references from the Gospel progressively come to mind. For the virgins
consecrated to God the ideal of life is the realization of the mystery of the
church, which gives herself totally to Christ and makes the eschatological image
of the bride present in the world. For the hermits of the early church it was a
question of asceticism or spiritual combat and of flight from the world, in
imitation of Jesus, who in the desert fasts, prays and struggles with the devil,
or of the prophets like Elisha who lived in God's presence (cf. 1 Kgs 19:11-12)
where God spoke to his heart (cf. Hos. 2:16). For cenobites the gift of self to
Christ is explained by the desire to imitate the "apostolic life"
according to the example of the community in Jerusalem, with Christ's abiding
presence among those who are gathered in his name (cf. Mt. 18:20)[86] and with
the inspiration of an insatiable longing which constantly reappears throughout
history to live in a unity of heart and mind (cf. Acts 4:32).[87]

For others the monastic life is a substitute for the sacrifice of martyrdom,
a realization of the church as a community of worship through perennial praise,
the divine or angelic office and the offering (<prosphora>) of one's own
life to God in fraternal communion. Others see in it the ideal of a return to
the harmony of the innocence of paradise, the disciple and bride of Christ
vigilantly waiting for his return, or an anticipation of heavenly life. Some
give pre-eminence to the search for God (<quaerere Deum>) especially
through diligence in the <lectio divina> of Scripture, in the <vacare
Deo> of contemplation or in the divine human balance of the <ora et labora>
of the Benedictine Rule.

The evangelizing monks of East and West fulfill the plan of the apostolic
life following the example of the group of disciples who follow Jesus and are
sent by him after Pentecost to preach the Gospel to all creatures (cf. Mk.
16:15; Mt. 28:19-20). Some preach the Gospel among their own people, while
others continue the universal mission to all nations, building civilizations and
spreading culture. Others, however—women and men alike—draw their
inspiration from the example of Christ, who was sent to preach the good news to
the poor (cf. Lk. 4:18), in the creative choice of many aspects of the
missionary proclamation of the good news. Or they fulfill the Gospel through the
works of mercy (cf. Mt. 25:35-36ff) on behalf of the little ones, with their
witness of charity and their care of the poor, the sick and the needy, with
particular attention to children and young people, in accord with new social and
cultural necessities.

In our day others want to be a sign of Christ by their presence in society,
in culture and in the economy, like light, salt and Gospel leaven in the heart
of the secular city, so that the temporal realities may be ordered to God's plan
and the world may receive life from the Gospel.[88]

An Experience of the Spirit in the Church

45. Every charism has an essential reference to the Holy Spirit. This is how
it is expressed in a well-known passage in <Mutuae Relationes,> which in
turn refers to Paul VI's <Evangelica Testificatio:> "The 'charism of
the founders' appears as an 'experience of the Spirit' transmitted to their
followers to be lived by them, to be preserved, deepened and constantly
developed in harmony with the body of Christ continually in a process of
growth."[89]

The Holy Spirit works in a wonderful manner in the life of the church,
bringing full understanding of the truth of Christ, actualizing his life in her
members and preparing his kingdom. The Holy Spirit has the role of raising up,
through truly "spiritual" men and women, charisms of spirituality and
apostolic activity, with a creativity and opportuneness adapted to the needs of
the time. He elicits within the church, the mystical body of Christ, a continual
growth of new energies which are a living witness to the Gospel of Christ. From
the viewpoint of Christology and an ecclesiology of the church as the body of
Christ which grows continually through ministries and charisms (cf. Eph. 4:16),
the consecrated life in all its forms acknowledges the Holy Spirit as its
invisible creator and the source of its renewal.

The consecrated life is a call to holiness because of God's choice of a
person, the gift of consecration through the ministry of the church and the
commitment to imitate and serve Christ. Thus, in the churches of the East and
West the charisms of the consecrated life are born from an experience of
holiness. Many founders and foundresses were called to the highest degree of
conformity to Christ in their life and service of the church. Many of them have
been officially recognized as blessed or saints by the church. In such a way,
religious families owing their origin to them are, as it were, their abiding
presence and a continuation of their experience of grace.

Every charism points to the mystery of Christ and to charity, the greatest of
charisms, the center and unity of them all. It does this with the freshness of a
new synthesis of supernatural values and with a genuine and incisive exegesis of
the Gospel. Every founder and foundress is like a word which in its depths bears
the divine charity which enlivens and unites everything.

"Strive Eagerly for the Greatest of Spiritual Gifts" (1 Cor. 12:31)

46. The consecrated life has its essential reference point in the church. It
is an outflow of her mystery and expresses the richness of her charismatic
nature and the manifold wisdom of God.[90]

The liturgy of religious profession for women expresses the beauty of the
church as a bride in these words: "Holy church shines with a rich variety
of charisms, a bride adorned with jewels, a queen robed in grace, a mother
rejoicing in her children."[91]

These charisms are of the church and for the church. They make the Gospel and
the historical forms of holiness and spirituality present. These charisms are
also destined to contribute to the effectiveness of the exchange of gifts
throughout the church.[92] A church called to the new evangelization needs to
receive from the Spirit of Christ an outpouring of grace which will strengthen
the charisms for the growth of the entire people of God in communion and
mission.

A life lived according to an authentic charism must be consistent with the
fruits of the Spirit in such a way that charity and joy, peace and patience,
kindness and goodness, fidelity, meekness and moderation (cf. Gal. 5:22) shine
forth in individuals and communities. Even though the renewal of the charism—in
being docile to the "authentic promptings of a real creativity in the life
of the Spirit and of the church"[93]—might call into question customs,
traditions, spiritual practices and methods of the apostolate, this must never
be a pretext for confusion and disunity, because God "is not the God of
disorder but of peace" (1 Cor. 14:33).

Every institute must take particular care to delve deeper into, assimilate
and manifest its essential core, which is characterized by its foundation in
Christ and in the Gospel, and by its communion with the other ecclesial
vocations. Totally new charisms can come into existence, or existing ones can
receive a wider purpose, in response to the action of the Spirit in the world,
in peoples, in cultures.

All are called to consider the apostle's teaching: "Do not stifle the
Spirit. Do not despise prophetic utterances. Test everything; retain what is
good" (1 Thes. 5:19-20); "strive eagerly for the greatest of spiritual
gifts" (1 Cor. 12:31), for charity, in such a way that "as each one
has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God's
varied grace, ... so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus
Christ" (1 Pt. 4:10-11).

II. Vocation, Imitation, Consecration

A Divine Call

47. The theology of the consecrated life expressed by Vatican II and the
later documents of the magisterium has pointed out the unity of vocation,
consecration and mission in an experience of life which bears the seal of the
Trinity.

God the Father, through Christ and under the inspiration of the Spirit, draws
certain people with a divine call[94] to follow Christ more closely. The
response to this call is always a grace: "It was not you who chose me, but
I who chose you" (Jn. 15:16); it is expressed in the total offering of
one's life in a covenant with God and in the service of his kingdom. In this
way, God the Father inserts into his plan of salvation (cf. Eph. 1:4-5, 9-10)
those whom he chooses and calls them to be conformed to the image of his Son
(cf. Rom. 8:29-30). Monastic and ecclesial tradition have found in some Gospel
passages, in the broadest context of the call to discipleship and apostolate, a
valid motivation for understanding the vocation of religious and other members
of institutes of consecrated life. The call made by Jesus of Nazareth endures in
time in the church; the risen Lord continues to gather his disciples about him.

Many Gospel passages have been interpreted as the basis of the consecrated
life. Among these we should mention the call of the apostles: "He summoned
those whom he wanted and they came to him" (Mk. 3:13); the invitation to
leave everything and follow him: "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what
you have and give to [the] poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then
come, follow me" (Mt. 19:21 and par.); the gift of celibacy for the sake of
the kingdom (cf. Mt. 19:11-12) in order to please the Lord in everything and be
concerned with his affairs, with an undivided heart, in holiness of body and
spirit; and a call which is already manifest in the apostolic church (cf. 1 Cor.
7:32-34).

The consecrated life is a loving response to the divine call, involving a
particular choice to follow Christ intimately in total adherence, under the
action of the Holy Spirit in consecration and mission.

Evangelical Discipleship and Communion With Christ

48. Through their vows or other sacred bonds, religious and members of
institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life intend to observe
the many counsels in the Gospel, which the Lord gives his disciples to observe.
Foremost among these is "that precious gift of divine grace given to some
by the Father (cf. Mt. 19:11; 1 Cor. 7:7) to bind themselves to God alone more
easily with an undivided heart (cf. 1 Cor. 7:32-34) in virginity or
celibacy."[95] This counsel and charism involves a genuine covenant with
God, rooted in baptism, from which the profession of the evangelical counsels
originates.[96]

The closer following of Christ through the evangelical counsels is achieved
in faith, hope and love, and expressed in imitation and service, in communion
with Christ the bridegroom and Lord of one's life, in participation in his
mysteries and in adherence to everything that belongs to him. In imitation of
Paul the ideal of the consecrated life is expressed in leaving behind all things
and in a life of teaching out to the Lord and participating fully in his paschal
mystery in order "to know him and the power of his resurrection and [the]
sharing of his sufferings by being conformed to his death, if somehow I may
attain the resurrection from the dead" (cf. Phil. 310-11).

The evangelical counsels, lived in the broader context of the beatitudes,
have the power to conform a person to the crucified and risen Christ.
"Religious, therefore, faithful to their profession and leaving all things
for Christ's sake (cf. Mk. 10:28), should follow him, regarding this as the one
thing necessary (cf. Lk. 10:39), and should be solicitous for all that is his (1
Cor. 7:32)."[97]

Sharing in Christ's Consecration

49. Consecration through the profession of the evangelical counsels has
meaning only in the light of Christ. He is the consecrated one par excellence,
as is expressed by his name, the Christ. He is the Son, "the one whom the
Father has consecrated and sent into the world" (Jn. 10:36), Jesus of
Nazareth, whom "God anointed ... with the Holy Spirit and power" (Acts
10:38). His is a consecration for the sake of mission:

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring
glad tidings to the poor" (Lk. 4:18). The response to this interior
anointing is the total dedication of the Son who always lives in the Father's
presence and dedicates himself to the Father's affairs (cf. Lk. 2:49) and to
fulfilling his will to the point of giving up his life (cf. Heb. 10:59). His
offering is also a total gift to the Father on behalf of his disciples and
humanity: "I consecrate myself for them, so that they also may be
consecrated in truth" (Jn. 17:19).

In summary, we may say, "The fuller expression (of consecration) recalls
the hold of the divine person of the Word over the human nature which he
assumed, and it invites a response like that of Jesus: a dedication of oneself
to God in a way which he alone makes possible and which witnesses to his
holiness and absoluteness. Such a consecration is a gift of God: a grace freely
given."[98]

Consecration Rooted in Baptism

50. Through baptism and the anointing of the Holy Spirit all Christians are
consecrated people of God and are given the ability to make an evangelical and
filial response in the imitation of Christ. The Holy Spirit, the sanctifier,
consecrates the faithful, places them in communion with Christ and the Father,
and makes them capable of living fully the demands of discipleship and mission.

Inserting the theology of religious life into the sacramental dimension of
the church, Vatican II highlighted its relationship with baptismal consecration
and its demands: "The members of each institute should recall, first of
all, that when they made their profession of the evangelical counsels they were
responding to a divine call so that, not merely being dead to sin (cf. Rom.
6:11) but renouncing the world also, they might live for God alone. They have
dedicated their whole lives to this service. This constitutes a special
consecration which is deeply rooted in their baptismal consecration and is a
fuller expression of it."[99] Consecration consists of a grace of election
and a particular gift of the Spirit, who takes possession of the person,
configures him to Christ and enables him to live his proper charism according to
the evangelical counsels. At the same time, it is also a response of
self-giving, accepted and recognized through the 116 church's ministry. Just as
baptism and confirmation are the first and fundamental consecration of each of
Jesus' disciples, who thereby participate in his paschal mystery and the mystery
of Pentecost in order to live as a member of Christ's faithful in the church, so
too consecration according to the solidity and stability of the vows or other
bonds is a gift of the Spirit, uniting the person to Christ's mystery and
mission.

The liturgy of the Latin church clearly expresses this theology in the Rite
of Religious Profession and in the Rite of Consecration of Virgins. In the
solemn blessing of the professed or of virgins the gift of the Holy Spirit is
invoked upon them before they make the offering of their life in the eucharistic
sacrifice.[100]

This gift is always for the sake of communion and mission. This consecration
is achieved in giving oneself to the service of Christ in ecclesial communion,
according to the apostolate of each form of life. This gift finds its
celebration and daily renewal in the eucharist.

Gift and Obligation of the Evangelical Counsels

51. Vocation, consecration and mission find their own distinctive expression
and fulfillment in the gift or charism of the evangelical counsels. When God
calls, consecrates and sends a person, he is simply molding a new personality
and making it capable of responding to the task which he intends to assign. In
essence, the gift of the counsels consists in a share in the specific chastity,
poverty and obedience of Christ, or in a special conformity to the chaste, poor
and obedient Christ, and in an introduction into his personal manner of living
and working.

Jesus' form of life is not based on the demands and development of the
dynamisms of nature, but directly on the values of the kingdom, going beyond
those goods which in the Creator's plan ordinarily help a person to grow and
develop. He does not look to anything other than the goods of the kingdom, which
have become his portion and lot. His chastity is a perfect communion of love
with the Father, an absolute openness and communication with him, without the
least degree of withdrawal or searching for self. His obedience is a total
dedication to the Father's will and a complete ability to fulfill it even in the
smallest details. This explains why Jesus' form of life is exclusively his and
why whoever is called to follow it in history must be graced with a special gift
enabling the person to accept it as his own. In the gift of the counsels the
Spirit conforms the person who has been called to Christ, who has no other good
than the kingdom, has no other love than that which flows from Christ for his
brothers and sisters, and has no plan but that of the Father.

After being aware of and experiencing this gift, one responds with the gift
of self through vows or other sacred bonds. The obligation of the one called to
make the counsels the content of one's life—even before being an offering and
a sacrifice—is the joyous acknowledgment of the offer to participate in and to
follow the very same plan of life which the Lord had. It is a gift so great that
one must invest one's whole life in order to accept and preserve it. The vow is
the unconditional restitution of oneself to God as well as an offering of self,
precisely because it is the acceptance of a gift. All this involves a total
immersion in the life of the Redeemer and constitutes an excellent realization
of the mystical dimension of life, subsumed entirely by the Spirit, becoming an
extension in time of Christ and vitalized by a love which represents the choice
of God alone: with all one's mind, all one's heart and all one's strength (cf.
Mk. 12:30).

Consecrated Chastity

52. "Chastity 'for the sake of the kingdom of heaven' (Mt. 19:22) ...
must be esteemed as an exceptional gift of grace. It uniquely frees the heart of
a person (cf. 1 Cor. 1:32- 35), so as to become more fervent in love for God and
for all of humanity. For this reason it is a special symbol of heavenly
benefits, not to mention a most effective means offered to religious so as to
enable them to dedicate themselves wholeheartedly to divine service and the
works of the apostolate."[101]

Paul VI emphasized that virginal chastity "reaches, transforms and
imbues with a mysterious likeness to Christ a person's being in its most hidden
depths."[102]

By its very nature and intrinsic demands, Christian virginity is oriented
toward worship and service, that is, to the worship of the body of Christ in the
eucharist, and to the service of the mystical body—all members of the body of
Christ—but in the first place, to the poor and suffering with whom Christ
particularly identifies. Chastity above all makes people capable of having
hearts filled with mercy and open to all God's children, whom they see as their
brothers and sisters—members of the same body—with no limitation placed by
gender or social condition. Just as matrimony generates the human family, so too
virginity generates the divine family. The body which is offered in sacrifice,
going beyond the ties of flesh and blood, becomes that of Christ, the source of
life for all. Virginity also generates fellowship. It enables a person to live
better the mystery of communion in one's community. On the other hand, the
community is the environment in which chastity is preserved and matures in
simplicity and in the joy of love and mutual friendship.

An authentic formation in chastity cannot ignore the natural and supernatural
means which lead to the fulfillment of mature and joyful people. Today's
cultural context presents serious difficulties in the work of educating people
to embrace chastity. These difficulties should be given attentive consideration.
They also call for a lengthy discernment process of vocations.[103]

Evangelical Poverty

53. "Voluntary poverty undertaken in following Christ—which is much
esteemed, especially nowadays—...enables them to share in the poverty of
Christ, who for our sake became poor, though he was rich, so that we might
become rich through his poverty (cf. 2 Cor. 8:9; Mt. 8:20)."[104]

In a positive sense, living in poverty means feeling seized and possessed by
the desire for God and spending oneself totally for the "coming of his
kingdom," especially among those who await it most anxiously and who are
its primary recipients: the poor and marginalized. To the act of dying radically
to all earthly interests is grafted and developed a concern for the new life
which is "being about the Father's business" (cf. Lk. 2:49) and
beginning, here and now, to prepare a place in which the kingdom can become
incarnate and manifested. The poor person, who has chosen not to seek his own
salvation in earthly possessions and has found it in communion with Christ,
cannot help but feel obliged to work so that everyone may discover this same
experience. Such a person will do all in total dedication and without any
self-interest so as to help others perceive the kingdom present in Jesus and to
make its acceptance easier through the adoption of a more human and consistent
style of life.

Sensitivity to the poor, the spread of an inordinate degree of poverty in our
world and an easy consumerism all call the consecrated life into question. The
responses offer a pressing call to consecrated persons for a clear witness of
personal and communal poverty, of diligent work, of detachment, of total
availability and of the effective sharing of spiritual and material
resources.[105]

Religious Obedience

54. "After the example of Jesus Christ, who came to do his Father's will
(cf. Jn. 4:34; 5:30; Heb. 10:7; Ps. 39:9) and who 'taking the form of a servant'
(Phil. 2:7) learned obedience through what he suffered (cf. Heb. 5:8), religious
moved by the Holy Spirit subject themselves in faith to those who hold God's
place, their superiors. Through them they are led to serve all their brothers
and sisters in Christ, just as Christ ministered to his brothers in submission
to the Father and laid down his life for the redemption of many (cf. Mt. 20:28;
Jn. 10:14-18). They are thus bound more close]y to the church's service and they
endeavor to attain to the measure of the stature of the fullness of
Christ."[106]

By the vow of obedience, consecrated persons submit to legitimate authority
in order to know and fulfill God's will. The renunciation of their own
individual plans allows a constant and total reference to the Father's will, so
that they may share fully in that freedom of the children of God, which is
revealed as a greater capacity to love and serve. This love is freedom so that
the will may be conformed to that of Christ in seeking only what involves the
Father's business. Obedience is first and foremost an entrance into the Father's
affairs and a capacity to bring them to fulfillment. Agreeing to die to their
own will, the consecrated persons take on the horizons of the freedom of God
himself. Obedience becomes a source of apostolic energy. Those who have made
Christ's interests their own cannot help but give their all for the coming of
his kingdom. Seen in this context, any obedience which might be called passive
or a lack of responsibility would immediately be a conflict in terms.

In present-day circumstances the vow of obedience needs to be carefully
evaluated from the vantage point of its Christological foundation and its
personal and communal dimensions, as they relate to the evangelical exercise of
authority and its implications for apostolic activity in availability and
communion for the service of the kingdom.[107]

Witnesses to the Paschal Mystery

55. Since all the baptized are called to holiness, they must observe the
evangelical virtues of chastity, poverty and evangelical obedience in imitation
of Christ. However, some are called by the Lord to live a radical expression of
these evangelical counsels through vows or other sacred bonds, which make them
participate in the <kenosis> of the Savior. Where the three evangelical
counsels express the total offering of the person, they also include other
features which are an expression, as it were, of Christ's unique filial attitude
to the Father in the dynamism of the Holy Spirit.

Those who are called to the profession of the counsels reveal and realize the
most paradoxical dimension of the Christian life—that of Christ crucified and
risen. The choice of chastity, poverty and obedience expresses the resolution to
participate in Christ's sacrifice and the glory of his resurrection.

The evangelical counsels have a profound paschal dimension because they
presuppose an identification with Christ and with his death and resurrection.
Therefore, they must be lived with the same attitude as Christ, who
"emptying himself," was obedient to death, even death on the cross
(cf. Phil. 2:5-8). At the same time, however, they impart a share in the joy of
the new life to which we are called, so that the Father's saving will may be
done in all things. Through the profession of the evangelical counsels
consecrated persons become witnesses to the Lord's resurrection and the
transforming power of his Spirit of Pentecost.[108]

Today's society does not seem particularly ready to accept the meaning and
message of the evangelical counsels. However, it is not the counsels which are
not understood, but the fundamental Christian virtues themselves of poverty
(detachment, moderation, hard work, solidarity), of chastity (continence,
self-control, free offering) and obedience (submission, readiness to serve)
which find no room in a materialistic, consumeristic and self-sufficient world.
These virtues are an effective means for bringing about a revolution arising
from the Gospel. Although consecrated persons respect and defend private
property, conjugal love and free initiative, and work hard to see to it that no
one is deprived of what is needed to live, to form a family and to provide for
their own future, they must show clearly that one can be poor, celibate,
dependent and a servant while at the same time being rich in life, love and
freedom, because "whoever follows Christ the perfect man becomes all the
more human."[109]

Consecrated persons proclaim that beyond any created good whatsoever, God
alone is the only good that satisfies the human person and that it is in him
alone that one can achieve the fullness of the Beatitudes. "The religious
give outstanding and striking testimony that the world cannot be transfigured
and offered to God without the spirit of the Beatitudes."[110]

III. Communion, Mission and Witness Communal Dimension

56. Since the consecrated life is an image of church communion in its
internal workings, it is an expression of the mutual charity in love which
distinguishes Christ's disciples. From the beginning and to this very day, the
passage of the Acts of the Apostles describing the Christian community as one in
heart and mind (cf. Acts 4:32) has remained open to a vital exegesis. The
fathers call it the "holy <koinonia>." Vatican II proposed it as
the paradigm of community life.[111]

The life of communion takes its inspiration from the fraternal communion
manifested by Christ in the law of mutual love and by the fellowship and
equality of his disciples (cf. Jn. 20: 19-23), in the image of the Trinity (cf.
Jn. 17:21-23). For some, unity in love is an obligation allowing them to enjoy
the continual presence of Christ promised to those gathered in his name (cf. Mt.
18:20). For others, it is a question of reproducing the community of the
apostles in mission. As a result of the evangelical character of the vocation,
sometimes a community draws its inspiration from various biblical models: the
model of Nazareth, the home in Bethany (cf. Lk. 10:38-42), the group of
disciples chosen to be with the Master (cf. Mk. 313-14) or the women disciples
who follow and serve him (cf. Lk. 8:1-3). Others are inspired by the Last Supper
in the Upper Room, by the Lord's appearance and presence in the midst of the
disciples (cf. Jn. 19:23) or the wait with Mary, the mother of Jesus, for the
coming of the Spirit (cf. Acts 1:14).

The reality of community life has also been expressed in a variety of
symbols: fellowship, church, assembly, temple made up of living stones, a body
having different members, a circle with God as its center. In this circle, under
the inspiration of charity, all the rays converge with the effect that the
closer we are to God, the closer we are to our brothers and sisters, and the
closer we are to our brothers and sisters, the closer we are to God.[112]

The diversity of types of community expresses the variety of images and
values in the church. Monastic stability expresses in prayer and work the
fellowship of liturgy and life; the itinerant community manifests the
evangelizing church setting out on mission, however needing to preserve unity;
and a community dedicated to organized apostolic activity expresses the
solidarity, effectiveness and fidelity of a common endeavor. There are also
communities living among the poor or other needy groups, bearing witness to the
church's closeness to them. Finally there are groups or individuals such as
consecrated virgins, hermits or members of secular institutes who take part in
various workplaces where they, like Gospel leaven, share the everyday activities
of modem life as well as the anxiety and the poverty of the most marginalized.

For all of these, community life is an ideal and a means to follow. Christ
wants his disciples to be configured to this transcendent model of the Trinity
reflected in community. However, it is a taxing journey which requires maturity
in both human and evangelical virtues; a sharing in fellowship and friendship in
the joys and sorrows of life; a solidarity in the apostolic mission; and a
constant generosity in mutual love to the point of giving up one's life.

In the community dimension the vocation of the individual leads to an
awareness of a "convocation" by God. Consecration becomes an
experience of communion and of coming together in the love of Christ, and
mission is a call to share the apostolic ideal. Although they have a purely
personal dimension, it is in communion that the evangelical counsels take on
their authentic human and divine dynamism, that is: chastity as maturity in
interpersonal relationships; poverty as a sharing of material and spiritual
goods; and obedience in freedom as a convergence and unity of intentions and
work—under the guidance of authority—in the practice of dialogue and
community discernment in what is for the greater glory of God.[113]

Fraternal Communion and Fraternal Life in Common

57. The dimension of fraternal communion is a constitutive part of every form
of consecrated life,[114] in that it is a sign of what the church is in her
mystery. In the church as communion—an image of the Trinity—the consecrated
life is presented as a visible, prophetic reminder of the communion which the
whole church must already be living and which, at the same time, is her ultimate
goal.

The concrete ways in which this dimension is realized, however, differ
greatly among the various forms of the consecrated life and within communities
of the same type as well. In fact, consecrated persons such as hermits,
consecrated virgins living in the world and consecrated widows embrace an
individual form of consecration beyond any forms of association which they might
undertake. They achieve fraternal communion substantially in their relationship
to the church and her mystery as such. The members of religious institutes and
societies of apostolic life concretize this fraternal communion in forms of
common life, but in as many different ways as there are institutes and
societies, each according to their own charism and purpose.[115] Although the
members of secular institutes do not live a common life, they express fraternal
communion in their profound bond with their own institute or by forming groups
for living a fraternal life.[116]

The first reference point of fraternal communion is the faith by which the
many become one heart and mind (cf. Acts 4:32). Community calls upon the faith
of the church, expressing, celebrating and fulfilling it. An act of faith is
never a solitary act. Faith generates communion in virtue of the central mystery
of the Christian faith, the Trinitarian mystery. The confession of the
Trinitarian faith recognizing God as "mutual gift" does not cancel out
the differences: Communication presupposes distinction.

Fraternal communion is rooted and founded in charity because through charity,
the bond of perfection (cf. Col. 3:14), we have passed from death to life. The
summit of community life is the eucharist. The consecrated person does not place
his hope in an ideal—no matter how noble it may be—but in the person of the
risen Lord. Jesus' resurrection, to which consecrated persons bear witness,
opens them up to hope for total fulfillment in the future. Bearing witness to
the risen Christ means becoming apostles. Thus, the dimension of fraternal
communion in the consecrated life becomes the bearer of the good news of God's
liberating love.

In group expressions of the consecrated life—religious institutes, secular
institutes, societies of apostolic life—following Christ, the poor, chaste and
obedient one in company with others means becoming an example in the church and
in the world. In other words, it means that apostolic fraternal communion, in
its various forms and in conformity with each group's nature and purpose, bears
witness to faith, hope and charity.

Growing in Communion

58. The common life in itself is charged with supernatural and spiritual
value. First and foremost the accent must be placed on "being"
communion, and afterward on "doing" something. Action cannot precede
being. Since consecration in itself is a gift which God has given to his church,
the fraternal life in common is also a gift which comes from God and which the
members of an institute or society must first of all receive. Afterward, the
members must preserve and develop this gift by the means found in the Spirit,
each according to its nature, character, spirituality and end. Any type of
strict uniformity exercised among various communities or within individual
communities produces a negative effect on the identity of the charism of the
institute or society.

The religious community, regardless of the concrete form it may assume
because of the nature and goal of the institute, should not fail to take into
account certain elements to bring about an authentic renewal. Therefore, the
community ought to be the place in which—through personal and communal prayer
according to the spirituality proper to each institute—the experience of God
can mature for each member and be shared with others. The community ought to be
a place where mutual love matures and is fulfilled, and where freedom and
solidarity are not seen as separate entities, but as mutually inclusive in
virtue of an effective participation in the paschal mystery. The community must
be a witness, a proclamation, a service and a gift to others in the apostolate
of silence, prayer and penance, or in the apostolate of works, contributing to
the church's mission in accordance with the charism of the institute.[117]

The community is, in the famous expression of medieval tradition, "the
school of the service of the Lord" and the "school of charity."
It is therefore a community of disciples in continual formation so that they
might grow together in Christ through a communication and commitment which is
always inspired by mutual charity.[118]

Service of Authority and Communion

59. The service of authority is fundamental to the order of fraternal life.
For this reason the religious community or society of apostolic life must be
under the authority of a superior whose primary task is to work to build a
fraternal community in which God is sought and loved above all other things.

It is necessary to reflect on what has been so rightly stated in <Mutuae
Relationes,> a document which describes the functions of religious superiors
in analogy with the ministry of teaching, sanctifying and governing proper to
pastors and bishops in particular.

Whoever presides over the community should see himself first of all as a
master of the spirit who, exercising a function or ministry of teaching, imparts
true spiritual direction to the community and an authoritative teaching
exercised in Christ's name about the charism of the institute. Superiors serve
God in the measure in which they promote the authenticity of community life and
serve their brethren by helping them to fulfill their vocation in the truth.

Inasmuch as they authentically interpret a collective charism shared by all
the members of the community, superiors must be capable of letting themselves be
helped and enlightened by their council and the other structures of
participation or consultation. In fact, all the members of an institute share
the responsibility of fulfilling the founding charism. This shared
responsibility is expressed precisely through consultative or participative
bodies, which vary from one institute to another, depending on their own nature
and purpose. The superior fulfills a ministry of sanctification on behalf of all
the members of the institute or community. Such a function is expressed in the
growth of the life of charity of individuals and community in the observance of
the evangelical counsels in accordance with the spirit of the institute.

Through the service of authority community life is ordered to its own
particular end and charism. The role of authority is that of a sure and
authoritative guide, of inspiration and encouragement so that an environment of
fraternal communion can be created, one which can facilitate personal spiritual
growth and the fulfillment of the apostolic mission, without, however, declining
the responsibility to decide whenever necessary.[119]

In order for this threefold ministry of teaching, sanctifying and governing
to be exercised correctly, the administration of a community should be both
spiritual and personal in nature so that a true spiritual relationship may be
established among all its members.

Life of Communion and Apostolate

60. The charism of the apostolate is a common patrimony. All members of an
institute or society participate in it by their vocation and, responding to the
gift of consecration, are open to its sanctifying activity. In this way, they
form a community, a group organized in common life and works, bearing public
witness to divine charity in the church and in the world. Here, there is a true
shared responsibility, even if lived according to the various functions
performed.

Fraternal life in common cannot be separated from apostolic activity,
otherwise a dangerous separation would result. Apostolic activity is essentially
communal, even when it is performed by individual members.

Christ is the origin of fraternal life in community and of apostolic mission.
Christ calls to himself those whom he chooses and invites them, as belonging to
a particular institute or society, to extend his mission in the world under a
particular aspect. Therefore, the basis of their being gathered in a single
apostolic activity is their love for Christ, who calls individuals and sends
them on a communal mission.

There must be a growing awareness that the apostolic mission is given as a
charism by Christ, first and foremost, to the founder or foundress. This is a
collective charism passed on to each member and to individual communities only
through the institute which extends the charism in time. The individual mission
comes from Christ but is part of the church's one hierarchical mission, in
communion with the pope and the college of bishops, and is mediated by the
institute because it is a share in a common mission. Therefore, every member is
personally responsible for fulfilling this mission and ought to live the
specific mission he has received from the superiors as the mission of the whole
institute. The mission given by the superior in the name of the institute
guarantees that the activity performed by the individual or a particular
community is consistent with the mission of the whole institute in communion
with the universal and particular church.

Participating in the Church's Mission

61. What makes the entire institute a true apostolic community is not the
fact that it is spread throughout the whole world or the juridical fact of the
mutual and perpetual bond which binds all the members in one institute, but the
internal and more basic element of the union of souls, that is, the fraternal
communion rooted in and founded on the charity of Christ, who gathers the
members together and sends them forth. The life of fraternal communion per se is
not conferred by simply being together and sharing in an external organization
of life. Rather it derives from living one's entire life with reference to the
institute and in communion with the other members, with whom one shares the same
charism of mission. Thus, at the level of the local community it is not the
physical fact of living under the same roof or the juridical element of an
individual's being sent to a specific community which makes a group of persons
an apostolic community, rather it is the charism—mission lived together in a
particular apostolate. What unites the members of a community in an apostolic
fraternal life is the desire to fulfill the plan of the common mission.

Fidelity to the charism calls all the members of an apostolic community to
work together for the same end and determines the way that community life is
organized. The common apostolic project to be achieved is the main point of
reference for every individual community and the way in which each member of it
"creates community."

The convergence of all the members in a single apostolic endeavor is the
expression of the union of souls in mutual charity and therefore of the love of
Christ. However, as a sign of its authenticity and a support in its expression,
this convergence needs a whole range of communal forms and activities which
promote each single member's exchange of ideas, sharing and cooperation in the
apostolate, even in cases in which not all the members of a community
participate in the same apostolate.

The community is not prior to the mission in that the former is not located
in some sphere extraneous to the latter, rather it is achieved in and through
the same apostolic activity. Mission is not only the consequence or fruit of an
intense fraternal life in community, it is also the environment in which the
unity of the members of the community is expressed and achieved.[120]

Delving deeper into the mystery of the church, the Second Vatican Council
presented the nature of the church and her universal mission as inextricably
linked: "The church, in Christ, is in the nature of sacrament—a sign and
instrument, that is, of communion with God and of unity among all
people."[121] A good understanding of the church does not separate her
mystery from her mission. Mission is not an appendage, but an integral part of
her most intimate nature.[122] Indeed, the church accepts the gift of
Trinitarian communion, incarnates it and communicates it as the offering and
gift of salvation which she herself has received. Thus, the church is the
"universal sacrament of salvation."[123] Her sacramental structure,
the elements incorporated in her and the vocations and charisms which enrich her
must be understood in the light of mission. The essence of her mission, in
continuation of the mission of the incarnate Word and of the Spirit, is to
manifest God's saving love, a gift given in mystery. Thus mission is not to be
confused with its various expressions, expressions determined by the
communication of the life-giving love of God in the diverse ministries and
activities of the apostolate.

In essence mission is not the church's own. It proceeds from God and is
oriented toward him. It finds its ultimate purpose, nature and manifold richness
in the mystery of the Trinity. It is essential for mission to make visible the
mystery of love which is the life of the Trinity.

Unity of Consecration and Mission

62. Mission is in itself more than an activity or apostolate. As Christ was
consecrated and sent into the world (cf. Jn. 10:36), making his whole life a
salvific mission, in a similar manner consecrated persons, called to reproduce
in themselves the image of the firstborn Son (cf. Rom. 8:29) through the action
of the Spirit, must make their whole life a mission.

The mission of consecrated life in the church takes its initiative from its
experience of God which is open to all dimensions of life: to prayer, to the
witness of fraternal life, to the courageous proclamation of the Gospel, to
commitment to justice and human advancement.

The unity of consecration and mission is founded on the theology of creation
and incarnation, and has its unity in Christ, the Word of God who became man and
came to dwell among us. As God's gift to the church and the world, it jointly
manifests a prophetic witness to the kingdom and its eschatological dimension.
Consecrated persons are called to an ever fuller and more mature integration of
the various aspects of their life. Indeed, they must feel that they are in a
relationship with the world and yet separated from it, and called to work in the
world but like the leaven as mentioned in the Gospel. In this way, not only can
they offer the loving service of their life in Christ's name, but they can also
propose a renewed vision of the true meaning and value of earthly things and a
clear understanding of the necessary interdependence among people, the basis of
every community and society.

Whoever is called by Christ to be a disciple should feel fully engaged in his
mission as an apostle. Those who choose to spend their whole life in
communicating the Gospel manifest the supreme value of love.

Unity and Variety of Mission

63. The apostolate of consecrated persons consists first and foremost in the
witness of their life.[124] This holds true also for societies of apostolic life
and members of secular institutes. In religious institutes such witness is
public and explicit, as well as personal and communal.

In institutes wholly dedicated to contemplation, the contemplative life
itself is the mission. Their mission is also the witness and outreach with which
they live a prayerful communion with the Father through the Spirit, as Christ
did during his earthly life. They express the attitude of the virgin mother, who
in her heart pondered the words of her Son (cf. Lk. 2:19, 51).[125]

In institutes dedicated to apostolic works, mission belongs to its very
nature. Avoiding every idea of a dichotomy, their members are called to live the
unity of experiencing Jesus in communion with the Father and in dedication to
others in such a way that all their activity is imbued with a religious
spirit.[126] Societies of apostolic life and missionary institutes highlight the
church's missionary outreach and represent Jesus traveling to various places to
preach the Gospel.[127] Secular institutes live mission in secular situations
and make Jesus visibly alive in the midst of people, working in the world
through the evangelical charisms.[128]

Great opportunities for the church's mission are opening up today such as:
involvement in new cultural situations; the explosion of poverty; the fall of
messianic ideologies; a new hunger for the transcendent; and the opening up of
new horizons for the proclamation of the Gospel. Today's situations have created
new opportunities and new "<aeropauses>" for the mission of the
consecrated life in the present and in the near future, as will be more explicit
in the fourth part of the <instrumentum laboris.>

A Prophetic and Transcendent Sign

64. The mission of the consecrated life has a special prophetic role in the
midst of the people of God, which is prophetic by its very nature. First of all,
consecration itself is already a prophecy in virtue of the fact that it bears
witness to Gospel values, which frequently are counter-cultural in a society
marked by secularism. Such values are a prophetic rejection of the idols which
this world is always tempted to adore. Moreover, it is always destined to evoke
questions in those who are pursuing purely earthly goals. Therefore, when it is
lived fully and in joyful thanksgiving, the consecrated life is a prophecy
pointing to ultimate realities, the definitive goal of every created thing and
the final destiny of every event of human history, the earth and the universe.
This prophecy is needed more than ever in an era like our own, marked by a lack
of clarity about various human longings. Therefore, the consecrated life is
considered "a very clear symbol of the heavenly kingdom."[129]

The consecrated life is a prophetic sign when it makes the primacy of God's
love present and visible. It witnesses to that presence through the particular
charism of the individual institutes, lived in service of the poor and
abandoned, of the victims of violence and injustice, and of the new poor who
make society's panorama a sad one. This service is done in imitation of the
founder's compassion and mercy, and with a sensitivity for human rights and the
just cause of human advancement.

A courageous prophetic effort, undertaken for the future of humanity and to
assure God's presence in the future, is also expected from the synod so that
hope for the future of the consecrated life can be better developed in light of
an authentic Christian service of the whole human person and all of humanity,
the intended recipients of the salvation brought by Jesus Christ.

In Communion With the Virgin Mary

65. Many responses emphasize the need to present the Virgin Mary in the
consecrated life as the model and mother of Jesus' disciples. Mary is the model
of the response to the divine call and of the basic character of following
Christ. She is the person consecrated by the power of the Holy Spirit. Her life
is total adherence to the mission of Christ and the church.[130]

In the church, under the action of the Holy Spirit, consecrated persons
choose "that kind of poor and virginal life which Christ the Lord chose for
himself and which his virgin mother embraced,"[131] together with Joseph,
who is also a particular master for those called to the contemplative life or
the apostolate.[132]

Through her unconditional response to the divine call and her interior
consecration through the Holy Spirit she is the model of vocation and of total
self-giving to God. She lived virginity for the sake of the kingdom, humility,
evangelical poverty and a total obedience to God's plan. She is the first
disciple and the incomparable example of following Christ, the Lord. Through her
total dedication to the mystery and mission of her Son, she shines as a model of
apostolic and ecclesial service. In her life, which is "a model for
all,"[133] the charisms of the consecrated life are reflected as in a
mirror. Both in the solitude of monasteries and in the midst of the events of
the world and society, she is the model of spouse and virgin—especially for
consecrated women—in her dedication to contemplation and self-sacrifice for
the apostolate.

Many institutes have an explicit reference to the mother of God in their
names. However, all institutes, guided by their founders, spontaneously
recognize Mary's motherly presence as a bond of communion within their own
institutes and, either explicitly or implicitly, see in their own style of life
and apostolate a special dimension of the life and mystery of Mary. Indeed, she
is the ark of the new covenant; the handmaid of the Lord in the poverty of the
<anawim>; the mother of fair love from Bethlehem to Calvary and beyond;
the obedient virgin whose yes to the Lord changed our history; the contemplative
woman who treasured everything in her heart; the missionary who hastened to
visit Elizabeth; the only person attentive to the needs at Cana; the steadfast
witness at the foot of the cross; and the center of unity which sustained the
young church gathered to await the Holy Spirit. As mother of the consecrated one
and of the one sent by the Father, by her <fiat> and her <magnificat,>
Mary teaches everyone to abandon themselves to God, joyfully to proclaim God's
praise and to become involved with God in salvation history, especially on
behalf of the poor and lowly.[134]

Genuine Marian spirituality in the consecrated life is nourished through a
knowledge of Mariology and through the promotion of liturgical worship and
popular devotion. However, it is fostered primarily through a Marian lifestyle
and apostolate, one which helps manifest in the world the mystery of Trinitarian
love, in communion with the holy mother of the Lord and open to all the needs of
the world, especially to the needs of those who are the most poor and needy in
body and spirit.

III. CONSECRATED LIFE IN ECCLESIAL COMMUNION

I. Ecclesiology of Communion

The Church as Communion

66. On the basis of the teaching of Vatican II, the 1985 extraordinary
assembly of the Synod of Bishops affirmed that the ecclesiology of communion is
the foundation of the church's ordering and of a proper relationship between
unity and pluriformity in her.[135] This has also been confirmed by other
documents[136] and is in conformity with the nature of the church and the
<sensus fidei.>

In baptism a person is constituted a child of the Father through the power of
the one Spirit, in the only begotten Son. In participating in the body and blood
of the Lord, one enters into a deep union with all the other faithful, who
together form in him one body, the church.[137] The church is a communion
because, as the work of the three divine persons, she is "a people brought
into unity from the unity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.[138]

By sharing through baptism in the priestly, prophetic and kingly office of
Christ, there is a true equality in dignity and in action in that everyone,
called to holiness in the exercise of charity, works together in building up the
body of Christ and discharges the mission which God has entrusted to the church
to accomplish in the world. The church is constituted as the communion of saints
in that all the faithful, sharing in the same goods of salvation (the "holy
things"), are made holy in the bond of charity and in union of prayer.[139]
However, every believer concretely fulfills his vocation to holiness by building
up the body of Christ in his own way according to the gifts received from the
Spirit and according to the ministries and services he is called to perform in
the church. This in turn actualizes a communion of charisms and ministries.[140]
Equality is thus enriched by a pluriform diversity.

Sacramental, Hierarchical and Charismatic Communion

67. The church as a body (cf. Rom. 12:4-5; 1 Cor. 12:12ff.; Eph. 4:4) shows
how her members are both unified and diverse at one and the same time. The
church is a communion founded on her sacraments, ministries and charisms. There
are different gifts of the Spirit and therefore diverse ministries and functions
of the church's members; however, all are unified by the action of the one
Spirit.[141]

The universal church—and her image, the particular church[142]—is
composed of various ordered groups of persons. Each of these groups includes
those who have received the same gift of the Spirit, perform the same ministry
or functions, are bound by the same obligations and enjoy the same rights.[143]
The life of the church as a communion of charisms is not broken down in a
polarization between the order of sacred ministers and the lay order, but is
rather shown to have a greater richness and expression. The fundamental
structure of the church, in fact, is sacramental, institutional and charismatic.
In her the ordered groups, roles, ministries and forms of stable life, raised up
by the gifts of the Spirit, are organically constituted. The organic communion,
animated by charity through a correlation to the mystery of the incarnate Word
and the mystery of the church, requires a juridical form through which the
charisms, which have a particular relevance for the life of the church, are
assumed in the institution.[144]

We can identify three categories or general orders of persons making up the
church: the laity, sacred ministers and those who profess the evangelical
counsels in a canonically recognized stable form of life.[145] These ordered
groups of persons are complementary to one another in that, having their origin
in the action of the Spirit, they are truly all ordered to mutual sanctification
and the one communion and mission of the same body.[146]

Consecration through the profession of the evangelical counsels as a stable
form of life essentially concerns the mystery of the church, which otherwise
would not be fully manifested and realized.[147] As such it is an intrinsic part
of the church's nature, even if, with time, its various institutional forms may
change and eventually disappear.

Nevertheless, it should be taken into consideration that part of the
apostolic charism of holy orders includes having in that sacramental and
institutional structure—especially at the level of the supreme pontificate and
episcopate—a pre-eminent and specific role with regard to all the other
charisms.[148] Therefore, ecclesiastical authority in the role of sanctifying,
teaching and governing discerns and regulates the use of all the charisms in
order to maintain the unity of the whole communion.[149] In fidelity to the
Spirit this service must be performed at the universal and particular level with
respect for the specific nature of each charism and role, and with the purpose
of fostering the specific nature of each charism and function.[150]

The analogy between the mystery of the incarnate Word and that of the church
is the essence of the ecclesiology of Vatican II. The church is a mystery of
communion. By her very nature, however, she is not only spiritual and invisible
(since she is born of the Spirit) but also a visible hierarchy, in virtue of
incarnate Christ, the head.[151] In the light of such a view of the church it
should be seen that, because of the church's very nature, the bond of communion
cannot be limited to the realm of the invisible and spiritual, but demands a
visible form rendered ever alive by charity.

Charity is the determining basic principle of all social relations in the
church. As a gift of the Spirit it is the bond of communion among all the
baptized—regardless of their category and order—at both the universal and
particular levels. Every relation between the members, whether individuals or in
groups, demands the exercise of charity, the fruit of the Spirit who dispenses
various gifts. Given the church's nature, however, wherever there is no
subordination in hierarchical communion charity is not perfect, and therefore
Christ is not fully present and acting, nor is church communion totally realized
or manifested.

Charity is the principle which inspires the relationship of institutes of
consecrated life with the pope, the bishops and the other members of the people
of God so that their harmony may express what the church is: the communion, in
the Son, of the children of the one Father, through the work of the Spirit.

Common Call to Holiness and Mission

68. By virtue of the regenerating grace of baptism and the anointing of the
Spirit, all the members of the church are Christ's faithful,
<Christifideles.> This is the basis of the common vocation and dignity of
all Christians which also belongs to members of institutes of consecrated life
and societies of apostolic life.[152] In fact, through baptism they are sons and
daughters of the Father in Christ. They are disciples who assent in faith to the
love of their Lord and master. They are living temples of the Spirit and living
members of the body of Christ, called to mission and destined to glory.

By their vocation, consecration and specific mission in the consecrated life,
rooted in baptism and confirmation and celebrated and nourished in the
eucharist, they are called to express their belonging to Christ in a specific
dynamism and in communion with the other faithful. Children of God, they have
given themselves to him in imitation of the attitude of the chaste, poor and
obedient Son of the virgin mother. Both women and men disciples have taken the
imitation of Christ according to the counsels and made it the form of their
adherence to Christ as the absolute Lord and master of their existence, pouring
themselves out for his service. Consecrated by the Spirit through the church,
they have received a gift which enables them to fulfill the demands of imitating
Christ and of mission. Sharing in a charism, they are called to express in their
life a specific aspect of the mystery of Christ and of the church. Called to
mission, they must dedicate themselves totally to it by their life and
apostolate. Destined to glory, they must bear witness by their life to heavenly
things, to the future resurrection and the glory of the heavenly kingdom.

Thus, they participate in the common vocation of all the baptized and
confirmed, and manifest the wealth of the mystery of Christ and of the church.
However, many responses insist that the state of consecrated life is not "a
kind of middle way between the clerical and lay conditions of life ... (but) a
form of life to which some Christians (<Christifideles>), both clerical
and lay, are called by God so that they may enjoy a special gift of grace in the
life of the church and may contribute, each in his own way, to the saving
mission of the church."[153] Therefore, there must be a more detailed
explanation of the diversity of vocations within the consecrated life.

Consecrated "Christifideles "

69. "All members of the church are sharers in (her) secular dimension
but in different ways."[154] In its initial historical expressions the
religious life was predominantly lay, not clerical. Today to a large extent,
members of institutes of religious life and societies of apostolic life—men
and women—are consecrated laity, although they are not "laity"
according to the nature proper to those who live in the world.[155] Because of
their consecration, their lay dimension, as a presence in the world and
engagement in temporal realities, is limited in comparison to that of other
laity. It is expressed, however, according to the nature, charism and
characteristic of their own institute, in the kind of life they live, and their
apostolate in the church and society.

Consecrated women and lay brothers belonging to congregations of apostolic
life can perform through their distinctive mission a special work in renewing
the world according to the spirit of the Beatitudes. There are also other
categories of persons such as consecrated virgins who seek to live their special
consecration in the world.

The lay members of secular institutes, who maintain their secular condition
in their life, mission and role as leaven in society with the newness of the
Gospel, unite their consecration with their lay dimension.

Consecrated Clerical "Christifideles"

70. Among consecrated persons there are also those who by vocation and
mission are clerics. The blending of these two aspects of the one divine call
has been documented since the beginning of the consecrated life. The vocation to
the diaconate or priesthood within an institute of consecrated life or society
of apostolic life brings out, according to the special character of the charism
proper to it, the way in which the ordained minister, although responding to
this sacramental reality in the church, can live with an apostolic missionary
spirituality and activity, which in its variety reflects the richness of
Christ's priesthood, and through the action of the Spirit makes the vocation and
pastoral activity of the ministers of the Lord not something univocal, but
extremely rich and expressive.

Priests "who belong to religious orders and congregations represent a
spiritual enrichment for the entire diocesan presbyterate to which they
contribute specific charisms and special ministries."[156] The same thing
can be said of clerical members of secular institutes.[157] Religious elevated
to the episcopate continue to be members of their institute.[158] The harmonious
blend of the two aspects of the one personal vocation, that is, the sacramental
and charismatic grace of the consecrated life, can bear abundant fruits in
holiness and in the apostolate to the degree in which religious priests have a
clear understanding of the nature of their ecclesial ministry, draw inspiration
and strength for their spiritual life from the fonts of their own institute,
live according to their own style of life and are available for an apostolic
outreach in the universal and particular church.[159] This is also true of
hermits and contemplative monks who combine the diaconate or priesthood with
their specific consecration.

Sharing in the Priestly, Prophetic and Kingly Office

71. By their dignity as <Christifideles> consecrated persons—women
and men alike—share in Christ's priestly, prophetic and kingly office and
express it in the specific manner of their vocation and mission.

This doctrine, so important for understanding the Christian vocation in
communion with Christ and in his service, was emphasized by Vatican II for all
the baptized,[160] and is frequently used to refer to the laity.[161] It should
also be remembered, however—as many responses indicate—that this also holds
true for the consecrated life.

Priestly and cultic dimension.

In their life, religious and other members of institutes of consecrated life
exercise a priesthood and a spiritual worship in virtue of their profession of
the evangelical counsels. Living according to Christ's example, they make their
life an offering, a sacrifice pleasing to God, made holy in the Spirit (cf. Rom.
12:1); by the offering of their own body and their total dedication to God with
an undivided heart in chastity (cf. 1 Cor. 7:32-34); by their choice of the
poverty of Christ which sets them free from idolatry to serve God (cf. Mt. 6:24)
and open to the needs of their brothers and sisters; by their gift of self
through obedience, in communion with Christ in order to do the Father's will in
everything, they are a pleasing and acceptable sacrifice for the salvation of
the world. In communion with Christ the consecrated life is eucharistic and
cultic.

Prophetic office.

In communion with the other members of the people of God, consecrated persons
share in the prophetic office of Christ through their witness to the Gospel. The
prophecy of the consecrated life is a sign for the church and the world. By the
profession of chastity they anticipate in their flesh the new world of the
resurrection (cf. Mt. 22:30). By their practice of poverty they manifest the
supreme value of the kingdom of God over all human and earthly goods (cf. Mt.
6:19-21, 24). By their sharing of goods they proclaim the universal destination
of everything to the glory of God and for the good of all, and they attest to
the value of work when it is performed in freedom of spirit. Adhering to God's
will in obedience, they proclaim the kingly way of submission to the heavenly
Father's loving plan. By their life and words they are an invitation—and
sometimes a provocation—for everyone, faithful and pastors alike, to serve the
Lord purely and freely in fidelity to the covenant of love. They propose anew
the value and the memory of God's original plan which sin has obscured and are a
sign of the yearning with which all humanity awaits the total revelation of the
glory of the children of God (cf. Rom. 8:19-21).

Kingly witness.

Consecrated persons are called to proclaim Christ's kingly office which makes
them free, sound and open to universal communion for the sake of building the
kingdom. This comes about on the kingly road of charity; with hearts open to
love of God and neighbor in chastity; by their joyful experience of poverty
which in this world already reaps the hundredfold benefits in personal and
communal life (cf. Mt. 19:29) promised to those who seek the kingdom; and
through their freedom strengthened by obedience, which permits them in imitation
of Christ to dedicate themselves entirely to the Father's affairs. In this
manner of life is rooted the glory and the gift of service, because to serve is
to reign: "This gift finds its total fulfillment in the unreserved
self-giving of the whole human person, in a spirit of conjugal love for Christ
and, with Christ, to all those—women and men—who are totally consecrated to
him according to the evangelical counsels."[162]

II. Communion in the Universal Church and in the Local Churches

Consecrated Life in the Universal Church

72. The importance of the universal dimension of the consecrated life in the
ecclesiology of communion and its basis in its relationship to the Petrine
ministry was recently emphasized by the Holy See: "In the context of the
church understood as communion, consideration should also be given to the many
institutes and societies that express the consecrated life and apostolic life,
with which the Holy Spirit enriches the mystical body of Christ. Although these
do not belong to the hierarchical structure of the church, they belong to her
life and holiness. Given their supra-diocesan character, rooted in the Petrine
ministry, all these ecclesial realities are also elements at the service of
communion among the various particular churches."[163]

The institutes of consecrated life, regardless of their nature and end, tend
to spread throughout the whole church very quickly, bringing to the various
particular churches where they are established a note of universality, in virtue
of their close bond with the ministry of the successor of St. Peter. Such a note
is not simply a geographical, ethnic or cultural reality. As a manifestation of
the mystery of the church, it is a theological reality. Universality is not
identified with a geographic union of nations and cultural or ethnic pluralism,
rather it is strictly related to the church's mark of catholicity, for which
reason it is the universal sacrament of salvation.

By their nature and by their feature of universality, institutes of
consecrated life and societies of apostolic life are dedicated in a special way
to the service of God and the whole church. The supreme pontiff is the highest
superior of all consecrated persons, who each owe him obedience because of the
sacred bond of obedience.[164] From this derives the fact that all institutes
are by a particular title subject to the supreme authority of the church, that
is, the Roman pontiff with the organisms of the Roman Curia and the college of
bishops.[165]

This bond with the Roman pontiff must not be seen as limiting the proper
autonomy of institutes of consecrated life,[166] but rather as a safeguard in
that it is a guarantee of their universality and the special nature of their
charism.

It is vital for the institutes to be faithful to the teaching and directions
which the Roman pontiff, united with all the bishops, gives to the church. Since
consecrated persons are to be a positive resource of evangelization within the
church, they cannot fail to communicate and witness to the authentic teaching of
the magisterium. To do otherwise would be a loss of the institute's identity and
role in the church. For this reason, superiors have the duty of intervening when
members of their institute are lacking in such a fidelity.

Such a bond of communion is expressed in a mature and supernatural love for
the supreme pontiff and his magisterium. The rejection of ecclesiastical
discipline and dissent from statements of the magisterium in matters of faith
and morals are damaging to the institute as well as to its individual members
because they go against the Gospel witness which they are to give within the
people of God, a witness essential to the consecrated life as such.

The "prophetic" role of the consecrated persons cannot be construed—as
sometimes claimed—to be in opposition to the pope and the bishops. Instead, it
is a sincere witness to Gospel values and includes a submission in faith and
love to those whom the Holy Spirit has placed as leaders of the people of God.
The difficulties which sometimes arise must be overcome by searching together
for all means to help bring about a sincere dialogue in charity, a charity which
always looks to the good of the church.

In the Particular Churches

73. The particular churches are an image of the universal church[167] in that
all the essential elements of the church are found in them. Likewise found there
are the differentiations of Christ's faithful into various ordered groups
according to the variety of their charisms, ministries and services. By
achieving unity in diversity the particular church realizes the church as an
organic communion in which the Spirit is like the soul of the body, with Christ
as its head.[168] The bond of communion, then, is charity which translates into
an appreciation of diversity and an active mutual respect for the sake of
achieving the common good.

The various forms of consecrated life as a constitutive element of the
particular church are born and flourish there, bringing their own charismatic
wealth and their feature of universality. In a special way the vocation which
looks to the universal church, incumbent on the members of the institutes of
consecrated life, is realized within the structures of the particular churches,
thus contributing to their spiritual upbuilding and to the unity of the
universal church: "Your vocation for the universal church is realized
within the structures of the local church.... Your unity with the universal
church through the local church: This is your path."[169]

Post-conciliar ecclesiological reflection has brought about a renewed
awareness that all the components of the ecclesial fabric are called to work
together to build up the one body of Christ. On the one hand, the members of
institutes of consecrated life, in conformity with their own charism, have been
led to give greater value to the particular church, seeking their own manner of
active presence in it. On the other hand, the bishops, with due respect for the
proper autonomy of life and government of the institutes, have often made an
effort for greater joint planning.

From the responses it is seen that generally there is a sincere desire to
build authentic relationships of communion and collaboration among bishops,
institutes of consecrated life, secular clergy and laity. Positive results have
been achieved wherever the guidelines of <Mutuae Relationes> and the
canonical norms have been applied well.

Consecrated persons on their part are becoming more aware of the duty to be
promotes of communion[170] in the particular church through the meaning of their
consecration in the church and their witness to the universality of the Gospel
message, which goes beyond differences of any kind based on race, culture,
tribe, etc. and through their solidarity and availability to all, especially to
the very poor. In such a manner they create bonds between the church and those
marginalized groups which frequently are not reached by ordinary pastoral
activity.

A Dynamic Communion

74. Despite these positive aspects there are also difficulties in
relationships between the various components of the church which should be taken
into consideration.

While one hopes for the full awareness and appreciation of the consecrated
life in the church, there is a need for institutes to overcome a sense of
self-sufficiency and over-attachment to their works so as to foster
relationships of trust and cooperation.

Some responses point to reasons for the difficulties and misunderstandings.
They find it hard to recognize the charismatic reality of the consecrated life
and its place in the church as an organic and universal communion, inspired by
the charity and transcending the limits of diocesan or parish organizations.

True collaboration is born in the local church when persons develop an
interest in the spirituality and charism of the various forms of consecrated
life found there and when these forms of consecrated life in turn become
sensitive to the spiritual climate, history and pastoral needs of the particular
church where they find themselves.

Members of the institutes have a serious responsibility not to disappoint the
legitimate expectations of the bishops, clergy and laity regarding the
following: a clear fidelity to the obligations deriving from their consecration
through the profession of the evangelical counsels; a witness of fraternal
communion in community; total witness of communion of mind and heart with the
pope and the bishops in all that concerns the magisterium and discipline; and a
ready willingness, in conformity with their own charism, their own end and the
necessary autonomy of life and government, to commit themselves to the pastoral
needs of the particular church in a spirit of sincere cooperation with the local
clergy and laity.

Bishops and the Consecrated Life

75. With regard to the various forms of the consecrated life, it is
fundamental to consider the role of the bishop, pastor of the particular church,
as a representative of Christ the head. The bishop, for his part, must recognize
and appreciate the consecrated life for what it is in the church and for all the
service it offers from the pastoral point of view.[171] Thus, the particular
church will be built up according to her nature as a true organic communion.

In the church entrusted to him the bishop is the visible principle and
foundation of unity[172] in faith, in charity and in the apostolate because of
the excellence of the gift of the Spirit he has received.[173] It is precisely
the bishop's ministry to be the perfecter and guide of the people of God. Living
pastoral charity, the bishop must be the teacher, promoter and example of
Christian perfection for the laity, the priests—his co-workers—and those
persons who are consecrated through the profession of the evangelical counsels,
each according to his or her vocation.[174] In order to perform such a task he
is given the ordinary power of government, proper and immediate,[175] which he
exercises directly over all the faithful of every category in his church, with
due regard for the proper autonomy of the institutes of consecrated life. 176

Since the bishop is responsible for the spiritual, liturgical, catechetical,
pastoral and charitable life of the diocese, it is his task to discern the
authenticity of the various charisms present in his church and protect them in
the various services performed for the good of all."[177] Therefore, the
exercise of his ministry is performed according to the principles of the unity
of faith and government, of the division of apostolic tasks and offices, and of
sincere mutual aid and complementarity.[178]

Organic Communion

76. The relations between the bishops and the faithful consecrated through
the profession of the evangelical counsels—particularly in the institutes—ought
to be based on some fundamental principles with very concrete applications if
these relations are to be constructive in ecclesial communion.

First of all, the members of institutes. In virtue of their consecration and
role in the church the members of institutes should have sincere respect—even
more than the others of Christ's faithful—for the authority of the diocesan
bishop in all that concerns his pastoral government, that is, the public
exercise of divine worship, the care of souls, preaching, religious and moral
education, catechetical instruction and liturgical formation, and the various
apostolic and charitable activities.[179]

The bishop for his part should recognize the charismatic identity of every
form of consecrated life, with the understanding that the engagement of
individual or collective forms of the consecrated life in his diocese can be
pastorally fruitful only if their special character is accepted.

Members of institutes are also subject to their own superiors.[180] In order
to avoid tensions in a "duplication" of government, everything must be
clearly regulated through conventions and accords between the moderators of the
institutes and the bishops.[181] Indeed, clerical religious are obliged to
maintain their fidelity to the promise of reverence and obedience made in their
diaconal and priestly ordination to the diocesan bishop and the legitimate
superior.[182]

All this, however, would remain empty and ineffective in building ecclesial
communion in an organic manner if it were not animated by charity, which
effectively is manifest in respect and mutual appreciation, according to each
one's proper nature and function in the church. Indeed, in order to be
constructive the observance of laws must come from the inner demand of charity.

Adequate Apostolic Presence

77. Precisely because both bishops and persons consecrated through the
profession of the evangelical counsels are inspired by the charity of Christ and
seek the good of the church, relations between them ought to be marked by an
open dialogue, true respect, sincere trust and active collaboration. However—as
the responses affirm—difficulties can arise from tensions between the demand
of fidelity to the charism proper to the various forms of consecration,
especially the type which is realized in institutes or societies, and the
pastoral needs of the particular church, which are sometimes so impelling.

In becoming actively part of a diocese with its own apostolic activity, an
institute or society will have the task of harmonizing with local pastoral needs
the fundamental demand of fidelity to its own mission and works. This often
requires prudent appropriate adaptation of its means. An institute or society is
not, however, to take on works or activities which might not correspond to its
proper founding charism.[183]

It is therefore necessary for the institutes of women or men to be given
works or tasks which correspond to their proper end. Indeed, all the apostolic
institutes must faithfully fulfill those spiritual and corporal works of mercy
by which they participate in the church's pastoral role.[184] The institutes
which by their rule closely join the apostolic life to the choral recitation of
the office and monastic observance are to adapt their manner of living to the
demands of their apostolate, but in such a way that they can faithfully preserve
their style of life, which is also a great advantage to the church.[185] It is
impossible to imagine adapting the constitutions in a manner not in
correspondence with the founding charism of the institute,[186] since that would
cause it to lose its identity and thus bring harm not only to the members of the
institute but also to the church.

Coordination is certainly necessary among the apostolic activities of the
various institutes as well as collaboration between them and the diocesan clergy
under the guidance of the bishop, the pastor of the particular church in which
the institutes are active. However, this is always to be done—and this holds
for institutes dedicated entirely to the apostolate—so as to preserve the
nature, end and basic laws of each institute.[187] Pastoral activity must
neither extinguish charisms nor homogenize their differences. Instead it should
value the charisms of spirituality and apostolate which the Spirit has given to
the church.[188]

On the diocesan, national and universal level the promotion of the specific
apostolate of the institutes through the expertise of the consecrated persons is
the source of apostolic dynamism for the church in the biblical, liturgical,
dogmatic, pastoral, ecumenical, missionary and social fields.[189]

Sometimes problems arise when parishes are entrusted to religious priests or
members of societies of apostolic life. In fact, they can feel that their
pastoral effectiveness and identity are somewhat hampered if their presence in
the parish is considered as something supplementary and not a pastoral
application of their apostolic charism. Furthermore, it should be kept in mind
that the religious destined for parish ministry, if such a ministry does not
correspond to the purpose of their institute, can fall prey to a certain
individualism and thus experience later difficulty in being integrated in other
communities.[190]

The responses indicate that frequently the bishops and faithful lament the
frequency of transfers of religious in parishes, since pastoral care requires
continuity and a rather lengthy stay. This, however, could create difficulties
for the apostolic dynamism of the institutes, which must rise above the fixed
nature of the parish structures.

A Specific Contribution to The Mission of the Particular Church

78. In this context even greater consideration must be given to the specific
nature of monastic institutes and those totally dedicated to contemplation. It
is the former's duty to preserve the authentic spirit of the monastic life which
is expressed, either in dedication to divine worship through a hidden life or by
assuming the legitimate task of the apostolate or Christian charity, but within
the walls of the monastery.[191] It would be a betrayal of the nature of the
monastic institute if works were undertaken, such as the care of parishes, which
would inhibit the observance proper to the monastic life even though these works
might be necessary for the pastoral life of the diocese.[192]

No matter how urgent the needs of the apostolate may be, institutes totally
dedicated to contemplation cannot be called by the diocesan bishop to work in
the various pastoral ministries; that would signal their ruin. However, through
their spiritual witness they should be actively part of the diocesan family and
not be isolated from it.[193] Hermits[194] and consecrated virgins[195] have
their own special apostolic nature.

With a firm adherence to their mission and apostolic activity, the members of
institutes of consecrated life are engaged in the life of the particular church
with a spirit of service, in accord with the guidelines of <Mutuae
Relationes> and the canonical norms. In this regard attention should be given
to preserving the distinction between the works belonging to the institute and
those entrusted to them by the diocesan bishop.

As regards justice, agreements should precisely state everything concerning
the hiring of persons and the economic aspect,[196] keeping in mind that a too
frequent change of personnel limits the effectiveness of pastoral activities.

The bishop is asked to engage consecrated persons fully in the apostolic
activity of his diocese according to the charism of each institute. This allows
the particular church, which ensures the concreteness and unity of the apostolic
mission, to offer a pluriform and harmonious response to the demands made by
contemporary society. This also fosters integration of the various institutes
and collaboration among them.

Mutual knowledge and dialogue are recommended in resolving difficulties in
relationships, as are the establishment of offices for coordination and mixed
commissions or committees for the consecrated life. A specific role is performed
by the episcopal vicar for the consecrated life, a person with expertise and
training in this field.

In Communion With the Diocesan Clergy

79. The reality of the church as an organic communion must have a practical
application in the various areas of the pastoral life of the particular church.

Taking into consideration the special character of secular institutes in what
concerns the relationship of the institutes of consecrated life and societies of
apostolic life with the diocesan clergy, the church can draw great benefit from
the development of a reciprocal appreciation among the various charisms,
overcoming every form of clericalism, which would lead to a mere marginal
engagement—especially in parishes—of the lay members of institutes and
societies.

In the pastoral activity of a diocese, non-parish churches—chapels,
shrines, etc.—cared for by religious institutes or societies of apostolic life
must be considered as complementary forms of presence and apostolate, and be
conducted in harmony, yet in a different manner, from the pastoral activity of
local parishes in the upbuilding of the one church.

Greater development is needed for those means which promote knowledge, mutual
appreciation and collaboration.

Above all, seminaries ought to offer a theological formation on the
consecrated life and every institute of consecrated life to offer a doctrinal
study of the particular church and the priestly ministry in the diocese.[197]
From the practical point of view, there should be coordination among various
activities in the field of charity, education and health care sponsored and
managed by the institutes of consecrated life and those of the diocese or
parish. The role of the Catholic school in the diocesan and parish apostolate
should be better defined and more greatly appreciated.

On the basis of their participation in the one ministerial priesthood,
religious priests and those belonging to societies of apostolic life, although
they are not incardinated in a particular church and are subject to their
legitimate superiors, fully belong to the presbyterate to which they contribute
the richness of their own charism and pastoral methods.[198] For their part,
religious give to pastoral concern their witness to the eschatological yearning
of the pilgrim church moving ahead in faith and hope. Belonging to the
presbyterate places them in close communion with the bishop and all the other
priests, a communion which has practical applications.

In Communion With the Laity

80. Experiencing the church as an organic communion through a complementarity
of the gifts of the Spirit in the light of the mystery of the call to holiness
of all those reborn in Christ in virtue of baptism has generally led to
constructive collaboration between the lay faithful and the faithful consecrated
through the profession of the evangelical counsels.

This has also led to a new appreciation of secular reality as a theological
place in which the laity are engaged in their own special—but not exclusive—way
of dealing with temporal affairs and ordering them according to God by their
activity, especially by the Christian witness of their life.[199]

The entire church "has an authentic secular dimension, inherent in her
inner nature and mission, which is deeply rooted in the mystery of the Word
incarnate and which is realized in different forms through her members,"
whereby "all the members of the church are sharers in this secular
dimension but in different ways."[200] This is what lay people recall for
all the faithful through the specific nature of their charism, including those
in the church who profess the evangelical counsels.

Furthermore the laity, when they perform ministries and services within
ecclesial institutions according to the variety of the charisms received, bring
to these church institutions their secular dimension of involvement in temporal
affairs and thus provide an assistance to consecrated persons in their spiritual
and pastoral development.[201]

Consecrated persons are united more profoundly to Christ in the paschal
mystery of his death and resurrection, profess the evangelical counsels and
offer their whole being to God. In this way they remind all the faithful—but
especially the laity—that this world can be transformed only through the
spirit of the Beatitudes.[202]

In fact the laity expect religious and consecrated seculars, each according
to their specific nature, to offer an authentic witness of the loving choices
they have made in life, that is, the choice of God as the only absolute,
evangelical simplicity of life, sincere communion with the church and joyful
fraternal service in every field. When the laity discover the spiritual source
of consecration through the profession of the evangelical counsels, it so
happens that the laity often ask those in the consecrated life for assistance in
prayer and the spiritual life.

So that collaboration might be ever more fruitful, there must be above all a
respect for the dignity of every baptized person and for the Christian's
specific vocation and role in the church. Equally necessary in this regard is a
respect for the expertise of the laity in their field and for the special nature
of the life of the consecrated persons, especially of religious.

To achieve such a purpose committees or councils could be established in
various places and in various areas of pastoral activity.

The responses mention that in these days individual members of the laity or
lay groups are expressing the desire to share in the spirituality and mission of
the institutes of consecrated life in a complementarity of vocations. These
institutes are actively involved in searching for programs of formation and
structural forms to accommodate this participation and collaboration.

The responses often ask about the membership of individual consecrated
persons in ecclesial movements. Although on the one hand this does have
advantages, especially for spiritual renewal, on the other hand it can sometimes
cause difficulties. Participation in ecclesial movements ought to be based on
the principle of a healthy reciprocity among the ecclesial vocations. It should
also be founded on a proper ecclesial identity flowing from membership in one's
institute and be open to communion and collaboration as well as alien to every
overlapping of authority.[203]

Proper Autonomy of Institutes In Ecclesial Life

81. Since the consecrated life constitutes part of the charismatic and
institutional reality of the church, each institute enjoys a particular gift of
the Holy Spirit. The church recognizes for each institute a just autonomy of
life and especially of government, by means of which each can have its own
discipline and preserve intact the legacy flowing from its charism, that is, its
own nature, purpose, spirit and character.[204] Ordinaries in the various places
where institutes are found have the task to preserve and safeguard that
autonomy,[205] which in turn is sustained within the institute by the
administrative power which chapters and moderators of institutes receive from
God through the ministry of the church.[206] The authority of chapters and
superiors comes from the Spirit, in communion with the ecclesiastical hierarchy
which erected and approved the institute.[207]

Autonomy is an innate right of the institute insofar as it is an element of
the church's intrinsic structure. In fact the action of the Holy Spirit lies at
the origin of an institute's founding charism. The church, conferring the
fullness of the ecclesial expression on the charism, guarantees continued
authenticity on the basis of the legitimately approved constitutions so that
everything can work together for the common good and so that the authenticity of
the gift of the Spirit may be maintained.

In assuring the continuity of the charism, autonomy of life and especially
autonomy of administration not only involve the internal workings of the
institute but also its apostolic works. Otherwise the institute could not
fulfill its own end and spirit.[208] It is "just" insofar as it is
determined and protected by common and particular law. In this way the autonomy
of an institute, correctly understood, is an adaptation of the principle of
subsidiarity to the life of the church to the extent that it is a coordination
between universal and particular law in the church.

Autonomy does not mean that institutes are independent from hierarchical
authority. Dependence remains in the bishops' exercise of pastoral care for the
institutes so that they may maintain their consecration, witness and mission in
the church.[209]

Autonomy and dependence are two dimensions relating to all church members and
all church institutions. However, the institutes of consecrated life act in a
specific way in their regard. Since these dimensions are not opposed to each
other they require a proper blending, the guidance of church laws and their
realization through charity, the soul of the church's communion.

Institutes of Diocesan Right And of Pontifical Right

82. Autonomy and independence vary according to the specific nature of the
institute's founding charism and its degree of development in the life of the
church in conformity with the institute's designation as being of diocesan or
pontifical right.

The diocesan bishop exercises special pastoral care over institutes of
diocesan right.[210] These institutes, which are generally at the initial stages
of their existence, need help to become strong from the spiritual and material
point of view. The fact that an institute is of diocesan right, however, does
not diminish its reference to the universal church and the supreme
authority.[211] Therefore the bishop's concern is to be directed to the
development of the institute, which by virtue of its charism generally tends
toward universality. Since the diocesan bishop is a member of the episcopal
college he should not hinder the expansion of an institute founded in his
diocese or in other territories from fear of a possible conferral of pontifical
status.

The exclusive and immediate subjection to the Apostolic See by institutes of
pontifical right[212] is a guarantee of their autonomy in the concrete instances
where they are found in the various particular churches. It is also an effective
safeguard of their universal character and development, in conformity with their
original inspiration, all the while respecting the pastoral authority of the
diocesan bishop.

Particular Bond With The Petrine Ministry

83. The safeguard of the special characteristics of the charism and the
universal mission proper to some institutes finds its highest expression in
exemption. This should be seen in a positive light. Through exemption of
institutes from the jurisdiction of the local authorities, the Roman pontiff,
with special laws enacted by him and privileges granted, allows institutes a
greater autonomy so that their charisms can be better preserved and more
precisely expressed in their universal nature and apostolic effectiveness as a
participation in the pastoral care of the Roman pontiff for the whole
church.[213]

Exemption is based on the primacy of the supreme pontiff and is explained
only in a proper understanding of the relation between the universal church and
the particular churches, that is, between the pope and the bishops. At
particular times in history the Roman pontiff, by virtue of his primacy, has
exercised this privilege for the good of the life of particular churches, and to
defend and protect the integrity of the faith and the unity of the church.
Therefore exemption has been retained for those institutes which have enjoyed
this privilege for centuries. This privilege is not granted only for the good of
the institutes themselves, but also in view of the needs of the apostolate and
its common usefulness.[214]

In this way, exemption, in harmony with the nature of the church, is intended
to promote communion. Exemption carries an entirely positive character: It
recalls a total and complete fidelity to the Roman pontiff and a readiness to
service his universal ministry. However many of the responses raise the question
as to how in these times the privilege can and ought to be exercised in the
particular churches harmoniously and with pastoral effect.

Communion Between the Institutes And Coordinating Bodies

84. What individual institutes are called to be in the church through their
dimension of fraternal communion is equally applicable to all the institutes
taken together as a whole. All institutes are called to feel in communion with
one another and to bring about that communion, all the while respecting the
specific nature of their various charisms and putting them to effective use.
Through coordinating bodies, institutes express communion with one another and
seek the means to strengthen that communion and put it into practice.

It is desirable for the institutes which share the same charism or have
juridical bonds or a spiritual affinity to find better ways to achieve greater
cooperation, while assuring a respect for their autonomy. They should also be
open to possible cooperative undertakings (merger, union or federation) in order
to achieve greater effectiveness in spirituality, apostolic service and
formation.

The conferences, councils and unions of major superiors or moderators of
institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life—for both men
and women—have proven useful in the renewal of the consecrated life.[215] The
goal of such organizations is to help every institute to achieve its
purpose,[216] while giving due respect for its autonomy, nature and spirit. The
consecrated life can truly be renewed when each institute seeks to achieve its
own goals as the founder or foundress intended. Conferences, then, should not be
seen as some kind of common administrative organization which would substitute
for the decisions of the superiors of individual institutes.

As a sign of communion, the conferences make it generally possible to
establish greater cooperation among the various institutes on questions of
common interest, especially in what concerns the formation of members and
apostolic activity. From this point of view conferences of major superiors are
to be considered valuable to the life of the church and a sign of the times. At
the same time, however, major superiors should consider themselves free to
decide whether or not to join these conferences.[217]

Conferences of major superiors are meant to establish appropriate
coordination and cooperation with the episcopal conferences and the individual
bishops.[218] In such relations the conferences of major superiors must present
the mission of consecrated life in general and that of the individual
institutes, in other words, a mission of being a sign of communion. This will
assure a constant endeavor to search for a concrete path of communion in charity
so as to express the most intimate nature of the church.

More frequent contacts between the conferences of major superiors and the
Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of
Apostolic Life should be encouraged. A greater contact between conferences of
major superiors and episcopal conferences is desirable, with due respect for
their different natures. In this regard joint commissions of bishops and major
superiors have proven effective. Entities for communication and communion are
useful for finding practical solutions to pastoral problems and avoiding
theoretical or practical disagreements.

Discussions on doctrinal problems of a general nature concerning civil
society or the life of the church for the purpose of making public statements
about them are outside the scope of the conferences of major superiors.
Nevertheless, the major superiors gathered in assembly can be of valuable help
to the Holy See and the bishops, individually or in various entities, in
expressing their reflections on problems, including those of doctrinal weight,
concerning the life of the church and of society.

Witnesses to Ecclesial Communion

85. Mutual relations in the church must always be seen in the light of her
mystery of communion and mission. This allows the expression of a real communion
and participation at three levels: first of all, at the theological level, in
that church communion is founded on diverse ministries and charisms whose
exercise always demands attitudes and behavior of common faith, hope and mutual
charity; at the ecclesial level, because in the unity of communion the
evangelical meaning of fraternity and service is expressed; finally, at the
pastoral level, because of the fact that an authentic relationship among
pastors, the faithful and consecrated persons in the church must be marked by
mutual esteem, respect and acceptance of the diversity of gifts and tasks.
Everything, however, is placed at the service of bearing witness to the action
of God and the salvation of souls, which is the supreme law of the church.

The witness of unity is also a sign for the world. This "requires us
first of all to create in the church herself mutual esteem, reverence and
harmony, and acknowledge all legitimate diversity. In this way all who
constitute the one people of God, that is, the pastors or other members of
Christ's faithful, will be able to engage in ever more fruitful dialogue. The
ties which unite the faithful together are indeed stronger than those which
separate them. Therefore, let there be unity in what is necessary, freedom in
what is doubtful and charity in everything."[219]

IV. CONSECRATED LIFE IN THE CHURCH'S MISSION

I. Future Challenges and Duties

Spiritual and Apostolic Vitality

86. In the light of its nature and mission in ecclesial communion, the
consecrated life is questioning itself about the most important challenges
facing its future, beginning first of all with an effective spiritual and
apostolic renewal.

In general there is a call for a strong harmonious blending of consecration
and mission as well as contemplation and action. To make such a unity possible,
most people are convinced of the need to strengthen the spiritual and mystical
dimension of the consecrated life, that is, union with the blessed Trinity—the
source of all blessing—through the sacramental life, through prayer and the
witness that "God alone suffices," through an intense Godward life,
through a personal and spousal love for the Lord in the pursuit of a "life
hidden with Christ in God" (cf. Col. 3:3), and through a life immersed in
the Holy Spirit and docile to his inspirations.

The source and summit of one's personal and community life is the daily
celebration of the eucharist, to which is added frequent personal recourse to
the sacrament of reconciliation—including periodic community celebrations of
this sacrament—and daily participation in the liturgical prayer of the church,
as set down in the laws of each institute.

The more frequently mentioned means for the authentic spiritual vitality of
institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life include: personal
and communal forms of <lectio divina,> prayer and contemplation, personal
prayer and eucharistic adoration, love for and devotion to the Blessed Virgin
Mary, spiritual direction and the examination of conscience and "review of
life." Of course, added to these ate other expressions of one's own
spiritual tradition. Also of importance is the growth of a true community
spirituality fostered not only by participation in the eucharist and common
prayer, but also by a renewed commitment to share a journey of faith, as well as
to help one another in the journey of the spiritual life through renewed forms
of fraternal correction and promotion of charity.[220]

Considered the unifying element of the varied spiritualities is the charism
of the founder, around which a synthesis of the various elements of consecration
and mission should be made through the faithful putting into effect of the
legislative provisions of each institute.

Many responses emphasize the following as aspects which should not be lacking
in any form of consecrated life: the availability to take on the more difficult
forms of mission; a readiness to participate in the <kenosis> of the Word
to the point of martyrdom; compassion and mercy; a thirst for holiness and a
desire to spend oneself for the salvation of humanity; and a renewed personal
and community asceticism. Many ask that women and men religious give a silent
proclamation of their consecration[221] through wearing the habit of their
institute.

A reawakening of spirituality is desired, especially in the active apostolic
life, not only in order for its mission to be more effective but also to make
the consecrated life possible in a world which seems to be impossible to
penetrate with the work of evangelization and which requires strong spiritual
personalities who will evangelize it with the fervor of the saints.

A Renewed Apostolic Presence

87. The consecrated life harmoniously combines "being" for God and
"acting" in his service. The first witness asked of consecrated
persons is always that of living and acting individually and communally in
conformity with their consecration and charism, as expressed in their own
legislation and recognized by the church.

Consecrated persons help to make God's countenance visible through their
compassion and love for the sick and suffering. In a world marked by activism
and the loneliness of individuals, by indifference to silence and contemplation,
and by the search for technological solutions to human problems, the witness of
an authentic consecrated life is of great value because, rooted in constant and
profound contact with God, it manifests values which transcend the material
realm.

New models are emerging today for living consecration fully. In fact, some
seem to be necessary for the survival of the consecrated life in our world. It
is a question of forms of life which seem almost to intend rewriting the
traditional manner of following Christ, in meditation on the Word, in community
or in solitude.

Consecrated persons living in community express their dedication either
through the choice of the contemplative life or through a balance between prayer
and action, but always in the joy of belonging completely to God. This
experience is particularly significant in the younger churches where people of
different nationalities and races seek in the Lord's name to overcome
traditional barriers. Theirs is a Gospel witness which is often less visible
than the type shown by institutions of consecrated life traditionally known in
Western societies, but they are necessary for offering new forms of visibility
and Gospel witness.

It is necessary for consecrated persons, who live alone for various reasons
to follow the directives of the Holy See in this regard and be offered guidance
by their own superiors.[222]

The Consecrated Woman And Femininity

88. As mentioned earlier, women constitute three—fourths of all consecrated
persons. Through their evangelical witness, contemplative prayer, intuition and
steadfastness, their capacity for listening and dialogue, and their attentive
and generous response to today's challenges, their contribution to the church
and society is among the most important phenomena for the church's life and
mission. Woman's use of her gifts to participate in the life of the church and
society is not only the road necessary for her personal fulfillment but also the
contribution based on her womanhood. Both lead to the enrichment of the
ecclesial communion and the apostolic dynamism of the people of God.

In Mary of Nazareth consecrated women have their highest model and the most
authentic expression of the dignity and mission of woman.[223]

History bears witness to the contribution made by consecrated women not only
to the church's holiness but also to evangelization and mission, and to
catechesis and theological research, as well as in the field of education,
health care and service of the very poor. They have assumed important roles,
including the direction of schools, universities, hospitals and other
institutions. Today, by having a greater presence in the church and society,
women are exercising new roles according to the measure of their development and
preparation called for in a secularized society. In the public and political
spheres consecrated women work with lay people—men and women—in a
relationship of reciprocity and complementarity.

Conscious of their personal dignity and their own vocation, consecrated women
are seeking to grow in their appreciation of all women who are still oppressed
or relegated to a status of inferiority. A frank and clear recognition of
women's dignity is the first step in promoting their participation in the life
of the church as well as in public and social life. In addition, it is necessary
that they promote a suitable formation for themselves according to the diversity
of the forms of life.[224]

At a time when the church is rediscovering the variety of ministries and the
complementarity of charisms it is urgently necessary to clarify and give
official recognition to the role which they exercise in the church, so that
their specific dedication in the midst of the people of God may be better
defined. They are still far from full engagement in the church, despite the
magisterium's directives in this regard.[225]

Many of the responses ask that women be granted access to places of
discussion, consultation and decision making, and that they be present in the
pastoral entities of the particular churches.

They also ask for a greater active participation in the church's mission. It
is urgent that they be given greater involvement in processes of discernment and
decision making in what concerns their life as consecrated women. This is
explicitly requested in whatever regards the autonomy of monasteries of women.
They express the hope that nuns will be allowed to take the necessary
initiatives to ensure a suitable formation and to make the necessary adaptations
in fidelity to their own charism.

A lengthy, extensive and continuous formation must be offered to consecrated
women in accordance with their own vocation. A better preparation will give them
greater opportunity to be authentic, joyful witnesses and promoters of the work
for the kingdom. Some responses note that a lack of maturity and the want of a
proper theological formation are the basis of a counter-witness and the source
of many unsubstantial claims.

Promotion and Care of Vocations

89. The promotion of vocations is one of today's most important challenges
for the future of the consecrated life. The vitality of the charisms and their
presence in the church and in the world depend on it.

Reference has already been made to the many diverse situations in the area of
vocations. In many Western countries there has been a marked loss of numbers.
Many causes have been indicated such as family crises and the decline in the
birth rate; psychological immaturity which does not support lifelong commitment;
the possibility of giving oneself totally to the Lord and the service of others
outside the consecrated life; and a certain mistrust of institutionalized forms.
Often the witness of the consecrated life is not understood by the laity and by
priests, who do not favor the choice of such a vocation.

We note with joy the flourishing of vocations in the younger churches and the
countries of Eastern Europe. Such vocations are marked by a manifestation of
fervor, freedom, joy and self-giving in the apostolic service, which in turn
elicits other vocations. However, a clear discernment and a sound formation is
needed in these cases because there is the danger of one's making the choice of
the consecrated life for reasons of human advancement or of making this choice
without due regard for the demands it entails.

The promotion of vocations demands first of all the prayer of the whole
Christian community and of individual institutes, that the Lord, who calls
people to follow him, may give the church many good vocations. However, equally
important is the educational support of the family in communicating Gospel
values and a widespread pastoral activity toward youth—even if vocation
recruitment is not its goal—and education leading to a mature development of
faith and of human and Gospel values in Christian communities. The entire local
church—bishops, priests, deacons and laity—must show its esteem and concern
for the development of the consecrated life as a precious gift for all. Where it
is lacking, the church is all the poorer.

Consecrated persons must proclaim the good news of their vocation with a
joyful witness, an example which attracts others and a welcoming spirit which
encourages others to find Christ in the midst of the community. Assiduous prayer
and mutual help are necessary for perseverance in one's vocation.

Discernment and vocational "guidance" ought to be exercised
everywhere—whether vocations are scarce or abundant—paying attention to the
signs of the call and to the effective qualities of persons, and taking
advantage of psychological expertise for greater security.[226]

Priorities in Formation

90. The future of the consecrated life depends on the dynamic capacity which
the institutes will have in the formation of their members. In recent years the
Holy See has followed the area of formation with great care. One of the results
is the instruction <Potissimum Institutioni> which contains fundamental
guidelines for formation at the present time. This document is still not well
enough known and needs to be put into practice through educational programs and
the <ratio institutionis> of each institute.[227]

Many responses emphasize the importance of formation in circumstances of the
present day. Some mention that this formation must make up for a certain lack of
doctrinal teaching and soundness in the candidates. Frequently candidates have
backgrounds weak in catechesis and Christian practice. Many candidates are
affected by emotional immaturity, a prolonged adolescence and a certain
imbalance due to family problems or the negative influence of society.

Therefore, a formation program must be systematic, personalized, ongoing and
integral. A number of responses emphasize the need for a stronger and more
intense intellectual, philosophical and cultural formation in view of an
adequate study of theology and preparation for the new evangelization.

Members of secular institutes must be given an adequate formation in keeping
with the nature of their institute.

Integral Demanding Formation

91 Today at the level of initial formation the canonical form of novitiate is
not considered sufficient; instead the postulancy is assuming the dimensions of
a prolonged propaedeutic period—similar to what <Pastores Dabo Vobis>
recommends for seminarians—adapted to diverse cultures and institutes.[228]
Some reports propose establishing new formation programs for young people from
ethnic minorities or marginalized groups.

Beginning in the novitiate initial formation must offer a strong pedagogy of
faith founded on the word of God, on the liturgical and sacramental life and on
formation in personal prayer and mortification, with personal spiritual
direction and a solid devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. A welcoming yet
exacting community life can ensure a person's development in charity, emotional
maturity, obedience, availability, poverty, hard work and cooperation.

Formation must be human, ongoing, inculturated, open to ecclesial communion
and mission, and in touch with real life and the conditions of the poor. Its
orientation must be a vital process centered on the person of Christ and a
deepening of the baptismal commitment to imitating Christ, according to the
particular form of the evangelical life proper to each institute. Today, with a
prolonged period of vocational discernment, it is necessary to insist that the
candidates be guided toward making definitive commitments as a permanent option
for Christ.

A specific formation for the consecrated life requires a progressive
knowledge of the history, spirituality and the state of one's own institute in
order to have an authentic identification with one's vocation. Initial formation
must be given in one's own country with one's own countrymen as formation
personnel, and must be rooted in that culture. Ongoing experiences of formation
at the international and trans-cultural level are also necessary within
institutes so as to be able to transcend and thereby purify, discern and
appreciate diverse local cultures and place them in communion.

Moreover, formation demands, according to the diverse forms and institutes,
that its doctrinal, spiritual and pastoral aspects be completed by a practical
training which fosters the particular style of life of the various communities
and professional training with the required academic studies when this is
necessary for the exercise of the apostolic mission.

Enduring Dynamism of Formation

92. Some responses ask that the service of formation and the work of
formation be recognized as a priority ministry; that formation personnel be
supported in seeking a formation which responds to the new demands of the
consecrated life; and that the formation of the formators be promoted with
appropriate guidance, using to advantage the recent guidelines of the Holy
See.[229]

Inter-congregational formation can now be found in many countries as a
characteristic form of cooperation, communion and exchange among diverse
institutes. It can take on different forms. In all of these, however, the
candidate needs the guidance of formation personnel from his own institute in
order to integrate in his formation the elements of one's institute and to
evaluate its results.[230]

Following the guidelines of the Holy See and benefiting from the valid
experience of various institutes—similar to what has been proposed for the
ongoing formation of priests—it is considered important for the synod to
encourage continuous formation in various phases of the consecrated life as an
indispensable means of renewal in one's vocation and mission.[231]

Since formation requires a knowledge and esteem of other ecclesial vocations,
greater cooperation between the bishops and institutes of consecrated life is
proposed in order to have a better knowledge of ecclesial vocations through
appropriate centers of study. It has also been suggested that the theology,
history, law and spirituality of the consecrated life and of other vocations
should be properly studied within priestly formation in the ecclesiastical
faculties and universities, and in institutes of religious sciences.

The Challenge of Inculturation

93. The task of expressing the consecrated life in diverse cultures today is
one of the great challenges for its future, given the great diversity of
environments, races and cultures, and the church's mission for the
evangelization of all peoples of the earth.

Consecration is an act in which God himself enlists a person for a particular
plan of life totally dedicated to his worship and the service of one's brothers
and sisters. Consecration can be lived in diverse vocations and lifestyles and
expressed in various spiritual forms according to diverse cultures.

Inculturation, therefore, involves the whole of the consecrated life: the
charism that characterizes a vocation; the lifestyle; the manner of formation
and forms of apostolate; prayer and liturgy; the principles of the spiritual
life; and the organization of community and its administration.

It is not merely a question of adapting certain customs, but rather of a
profound transformation of mentalities and ways of living. It does not extend
only to the cultures of the younger churches but also to the changes taking
place in Western civilizations. In fact, the structures of the consecrated life
drawn up in the rural societies of the Middle Ages or those coming from the
period of the industrial revolution in the last centuries do not always seem
appropriate for expressing the needs and desires of today's women and men.

Inculturation of the consecrated life finds its root in the universality of
the Gospel and in the very mystery of the incarnation of Christ, who is light
for all the nations (cf. Lk. 2:32). Inculturation's first task is profoundly
connected to the method and content of the new evangelization.[232]

However, the process of inculturation is inspired by revelation. In imitation
of Christ who took on our human nature, the consecrated life must undergo a
process of drawing near to cultures in order to accept their values, to spread
itself in that culture and to bear new fruit. Thus the mystery of Christ
"in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Col.
2:3) will shine forth in all nations. The process of inculturation must be
completed in line with the <kenosis> (cf. Phil. 2:7) of Jesus Christ, to
the point of giving one's life in such a way that, reaching out with love and
respect to persons of a different culture and mentality the proclamation of the
Gospel, which is salvation for all, may be extended. A primary task is to
proclaim the Gospel of salvation in other civilizations and cultures, presenting
it in its fundamental aspects, proposing new wineskins when the old ones are not
capable of holding new wine (cf. Mt. 9:17).

Through a Process of Inculturation

94. Inculturation must take place according to some essential requirements.
The process must respect the fundamentals of the consecrated life: the
profession of the entire Christian faith; intimacy with Christ in prayer and
contemplation; the search for the perfection of charity; and the practice of the
evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty and obedience. These are the Gospel
"talents" which are to be always and everywhere accepted and to which
the consecrated life offers a shining witness. The values of diverse
civilizations can make new aspects shine forth in the life of contemplation,
community, sharing, hospitality, relationships within the ecclesial family,
respect for human persons and concern for nature. This attitude can favor the
acceptance of new forms of consecrated life.

The consecrated life, following the lessons of history and the openness to
universality which is proper to it, can be a fruitful area for an authentic
inculturation of the Christian faith and the life of the church. In fact,
because of the liberality of their gift of self to Christ and their love for
everything that is his, and through their intimacy with God and their closeness
to people, consecrated persons can also be promoters of inculturation.

Nevertheless, some points must be kept in mind. Inculturation is not achieved
through hasty and superficial adaptation. The discernment of what is essential
involves the following: a lengthy contemplation of the mystery of God; freedom
of heart which is acquired at the price of basic detachment from the situation;
familiarity with the word of God; and a great love for people.

The inculturation of consecrated life demands a deep knowledge of the
civilization and history of each people. This is acquired only through the
serious study of languages, customs, oral and written traditions, and a long
living experience. True inculturation cannot be planned too systematically
because—like life itself—it is in a certain way a spontaneous phenomenon and
a growth process.[233]

It is a question, then, of authentically living one's own charism with great
love and true esteem for the people with whom and for whom one lives. In this
context of charity—capable of making a person "all things to all
people"—is found the secret of the success of adaptations and
transformations. With the newness of the Spirit, these will give a dynamic
feature to a consecrated life which will already have within itself all the
cultural characteristics proper to the church.

II. The New Evangelization

Call to the New Evangelization

95. Consecrated life today is viewed within the horizons of the new
evangelization in communion with the church and her mission. It is the
invitation often addressed by John Paul II to institutes of consecrated life and
societies of apostolic life, a call which is capable of evoking within the
church a new impulse rooted in the power of Pentecost.

The new evangelization particularly is directed to those who are rooted in
the unfathomable richness of Christ (cf. Eph. 3:8), who have made a profession
to follow him, putting their life in his service, and who "are the living
expression of the church's aspiration to respond to the more exigent demands of
the Beatitudes."[234]

In virtue of their vocation all consecrated persons are asked to manifest the
saving power of the Gospel in the variety of the charisms which they have
received and through the witness of their life. For them it is not merely a
question of giving new vitality to the methods of the apostolate, but first and
foremost of cultivating in themselves their call to conversion—to let
themselves be evangelized—so that in them the light of Christ can radiate as
persons who speak with God and are filled with his Spirit (cf. Ex. 33:11; 2 Cor.
3:19).

Making the new evangelization alive and effective in the consecrated life is
perhaps the most important result which can be expected from the synod. In fact,
the consecrated life belongs to the holiness of the church like leaven in the
dough (cf. Mt. 13:33). It shows its fruitfulness like a mustard seed (cf. Mt.
13:31-32) and has the power to proclaim Christ without compromise. It is a light
which cannot be hidden (cf. Mt. 5:15-16). It must manifest the power of Easter
through the way of the cross. Particularly apt to religious life are the words
of Paul VI concerning the wordless witness which evokes these irresistible
questions: "Why are they like this? Why do they live in this way? Why are
they among us? Witness of this kind constitutes in itself a proclamation of the
good news, silent, but strong and effective."[235]

Commitment to the new evangelization can help to form individuals and
communities fully developed in faith and love, where the values of the Gospel
are lived in their most basic sense. This demands a review of the quality of
personal and communal[236] witness so that a new evangelization might be capable
of offering the people of today the perennial message of salvation in convincing
terms. Particularly in these days there is lasting evangelizing power in being
close to the poor, the sick, the suffering and marginalized so as to share their
life, according to the various particular vocations, for love of the Lord, who
is particularly present in them (cf. Mt. 25:40).

Evangelizing Through One's Life

96. Consecrated persons must be the first to undertake the task of the new
evangelization, by putting into action—flowing from their deep communion with
Christ—the best of their talents, according to their spiritual and apostolic
charisms. Nor should it be forgotten that "the apostolate of all religious
consists first in their witness of a consecrated life, which they are bound to
foster by prayer and penance."[237]

In conformity with their form of consecration in the world, members of
secular institutes are called to make a very real apostolic effort in the
service of Christ and his kingdom in the midst of society.

The new evangelization invites us to relive in an evangelical and apostolic
dimension the fundamental character of following Christ and responding to the
call to holiness. An essential renewal at its source will make evangelization
"new in its ardor, new in its expressions and new in its
methods."[238] It demands the witness of life in a more generous communion
with Christ, in such a way that the fervor of the charism may be new. It also
requires a profound renewal in proclamation and in works—in perfect ecclesial
communion—in such a way that it will be new in its expressions. Lastly, it
also urges people in these days to adopt that apostolic "boldness in
initiatives" and genuine creativity which is proper to the charisms of the
Spirit, so that it may be new in its methods.[239]

It requires first and foremost the commitment to live the Gospel which is
preached, and to incarnate it in one's personal and community life so that the
proclamation of the good news may be upheld by the power of Gospel witness. To
the extent that their lives shine and radiate the light and warmth of truth and
of the charity of Christ, these Gospel witnesses will be so many evangelizers in
the church and in the world.

Commitment to the new evangelization in nations with ancient Christian roots,
where the Christian fabric needs to be rewoven, requires an intellectual
preparation ready to respond to cultural challenges so as to offer men and women
of advanced societies the splendor of Gospel truth and the true meaning of
property and justice, which has its source and norm in God.

The Renewal of Apostolic Activities

97. In these days of searching for one's identity, it is important to be
aware of the demands of renewal in the apostolic mission, in light of one's own
charism and the changed conditions of the time. Today the state has taken over
many of the social works which through the apostolic work of religious
congregations put the church in the forefront. Today there is still an urgent
need for a renewed presence of consecrated persons in these institutions in
order to bear witness to Christ in the field of education, health care and the
works of mercy on behalf of children, young people and the elderly.

A return to the sources has helped many institutes of consecrated life to
refocus their traditional mission and offer new modes of presence and renewed
forms of the apostolate in response to the new necessities. The call to the new
evangelization is helping many communities to take a new look at the form of
their life in common and their apostolate. Sometimes courageous decisions have
been necessary in order to continue or to begin new apostolic forms which are in
harmony with the charism of the congregation.

Some criteria which can shed light on the choices are the following: the
commitment to safeguard the meaning of the charism in a given environment; the
concern to keep alive a genuine fraternal life; attention to the needs of the
particular church and a constant dialogue with its pastors; dedication to those
suffering from the new forms of poverty which the world neglects; and the
ability to offer new and meaningful spiritual and apostolic forms of
presence.[240]

New Forms of Apostolic Presence

98. Without neglecting traditional forms and apostolates, there is a need for
other forms of apostolic presence.

The choice of such a presence is required when an institute reflects on the
implications of inculturation. An analysis of the social, political and economic
situation of the Southern Hemisphere—which implies a dialogue between the
world's North and South—leads to a critical examination of many traditional
apostolates, not only concerning numbers and geographic location, but also as
regards their quality. Many institutes feel called to participate more actively
in the concerted development of peoples involved in the democratic process.

Some new forms of apostolic presence include the following: participation in
ecumenical movements which seek the promotion of Christian unity; dialogue with
followers of other religions, especially through presence and community witness;
and the call to cooperate with various types of local and international groups
committed—even for purely humanitarian reasons—to alleviating sufferings of
every kind.

A special form of apostolic participation in this period of the church's
history is expressed in sharing with the laity one's manner of seeing and
acting, especially in certain fields which fall into their area of expertise
such as schools and the care of the sick and suffering.

In recent years many communities and institutes have developed a network of
associates or friends—priests and laity—who share their spirituality and
cooperate in their mission. This is a growing situation which is still in search
of proper forms but which can allow communities of consecrated persons a better
expression of their life in the church and their specific apostolate.

These new forms can play an important role in supporting persons engaged in a
spiritual search who want to commit themselves to the church in a specific
field. These forms offer the possibility to create places for sharing, for faith
and for support in a common mission lived in diverse forms but realized in the
same spirit. It is important not to limit these new experiences but to leave new
paths open for exploration.

The Mission "Ad Gentes"

99. The new evangelization explicitly includes the generous invitation to
participate in the mission <ad gentes,> which John Paul II addressed in an
explicit manner to the whole church in his encyclical <Redemptoris
Missio.> It concerns all institutes, those of contemplative life and
apostolic life in virtue of their total dedication to the service of the church,
each according to its proper nature and mission. Their history and vitality, the
fruits of holiness and martyrdom of many institutes, and the development and
universality they have achieved are related to the generosity with which they
have responded to Christ's invitation to proclaim the Gospel to all nations (cf.
Mt. 28:19-20). The history of the consecrated life, "from the ancient
monastic institutions, to the medieval orders, up to the more recent
congregations" is one of mission.[241]

Today too, "since the members of the consecrated life"—and
similarly the members of societies of apostolic life—"dedicate themselves
through their consecration to the service of the church, they are obliged in a
special manner to engage in missionary work in accord with the character of the
institute."[242]

The pope addresses a pressing appeal to institutes of contemplative life to
be present in the younger churches, especially where religions have a great
esteem for the contemplative life because of their asceticism and their search
for the absolute.[243]

The Holy Father has also addressed a specific invitation to the institutes of
women and those of men which by their special charism were founded for the
missions. The proclamation of Christ, then, demands the mission <ad
gentes,> which is still not complete among so many peoples who are still
waiting for the proclamation of the one savior.

Institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life, present in
the younger churches, are invited to transform themselves from evangelized
communities to evangelizing communities and to be missionaries without
boundaries.

For the Unity of All Who Believe in Christ

100. Christ's prayer, "that they all may be one..." (Jn. 17:21)
must be in the heart of all consecrated persons. The institutes of consecrated
life and societies of apostolic life have specific opportunities to promote the
ecumenical ideal and activity, according to their charisms and constitutions. A
knowledge of the non-Catholic communities and their spiritual traditions,
especially those of the Eastern churches,[244] is the starting point for an
authentic practice of ecumenism.

Noteworthy among the activities most suitable for fostering the unity of
Christians are the spiritual ecumenism of the conversion of the heart; the
spiritual ecumenism of holiness; the spiritual ecumenism of public and private
prayer and selfless service of the church and the world; the promotion and
achievement of this spiritual ecumenism among the faithful through fostering
their spiritual formation; and the organization of prayer gatherings,
discussions, retreats and a better knowledge of the different Christian
spiritual traditions.

In particular they are asked to maintain relations with monasteries or
cenobitic communities of other Christian communions for the exchange of
spiritual and intellectual gifts and of experiences of apostolic life so that
the development of the religious charisms of such communions can make a real
contribution to the whole ecumenical movement. In this way, a fruitful spiritual
imitation can be elicited.

Furthermore, all are invited to foster an ecumenical education and, according
to their capabilities, a more effective collaboration, through participating in
the activities of the church's ecumenical organizations. It is also considered
opportune for the various institutes of consecrated life and societies of
apostolic life to have inside their community a delegate or commission entrusted
with guaranteeing their own ecumenical commitment in formation and the
ecumenical activity of the members of their own institute.[245]

Individuals and communities, involved for various reasons in the dialogue
with Judaism, should also be encouraged.

Interreligious Dialogue

101. Institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life can make
a valid contribution to dialogue with followers of other religions, where
oftentimes there can be found experiences of the "monastic" life
dedicated to asceticism and contemplation.

Many men and women religious are in a privileged position to emphasize some
values shared with other religions such as prayer, meditation and asceticism. In
such a way the followers of other religions can more easily recognize the
church's deep spiritual dimension beyond her organizational and charitable
aspects.

The methods of interreligious dialogue and the proclamation of the mystery of
Christ can include the following: the sharing of one's own spiritual wealth,
especially in the area of the monastic experience, some of which is already in
process; the exchange between centers of theology and spirituality to achieve a
greater knowledge of their respective religious heritage; and cooperation in
works of charity, which in other religions are often the fruit and sign of the
authenticity of the spiritual life as a sharing in God's compassion for all. The
consecrated life, especially the contemplative life, offers a witness to the
majesty and charity of God and the union of all people in Christ.[246] In some
areas the presence of lay brothers and the members of secular institutes can be
of great help for giving the church a silent but effective presence. At the same
time, the contribution of consecrated women is invaluable in this area for a
proper promotion of the dignity of women and their becoming a more active part
of society.[247]

Evangelize With the Fervor of the Saints

102. The new evangelization urges all the sons and daughters of the founders
to express with the fervor of the saints their own charism in the unity of their
consecration and the variety of ministries in the service of the kingdom.

Paul VI affirmed this in reference to religious; "Today more than ever
the world needs to see in you men and women who have believed in the word of the
Lord, in his resurrection and in eternal life, even to the point of dedicating
their lives to witnessing to the reality of that love, which is offered to all
men. In the course of her history, the church has ever been quickened and
gladdened by many holy religious who, in the diversity of their vocations, have
been living witnesses to love without limit and to the Lord Jesus."[248]

Thus John Paul II urged the religious of Latin America: "In the same way
as they did in their day, today your founders would place in the church's
service the best of their apostolic energies, their profound ecclesial sense,
the creativity of their pastoral initiatives and their love for the poor, from
which so many ecclesial activities flowed. The same generosity and abnegation
which moved your founders must move you, their spiritual children, to keep alive
the charisms which, raised up by the power of the same Spirit, may continue to
be enriched and adapted without a loss of their genuine character in order to be
at the service of the church and bring to fulfillment the inauguration of his
kingdom."[249]

III. Gospel Charisms for the World

Witnesses to God in the World

103. As the Second Vatican Council states, "Let no one think ... that
their consecrated way of life alienates religious from other men or makes them
useless for human society. Though in some cases they have no direct relations
with their contemporaries, still in a deeper way they have their sisters and
brothers present with them in the heart of Christ and cooperate with them
spiritually, so that the upbuilding of human society may always have its
foundation in the Lord and have him as its goal."[250] Great are the tasks
of the consecrated life in today's society, and the church appeals to these
tasks to initiate a renewal of society according to the spirit of the Gospel. It
is a matter of becoming directly involved in evangelization through the
apostolate and of giving an authentic expression to the church's pastoral
ministry.

Besides the spiritual presence which makes our society fruitful through
prayer, especially through the divine fruitfulness of the contemplative life, it
is necessary to affirm realistically the need for the presence of consecrated
people in society as citizens of this world yet pilgrims advancing toward the
homeland (cf. Heb. 13:14).With their charisms and service they want to put into
effect the Gospel of the Beatitudes and the works of mercy.

Today the consecrated life is present in our society through its manifold
apostolic services on behalf of others, according to the diverse charisms. This
presence is a magnificent expression of the charity of Christ for the total
formation of persons—from literacy training to the education of children and
young people—and for the care of the sick and suffering, the elderly, the
needy, the handicapped and those marginalized by society.

In order to perform this work on behalf of their sisters and brothers, some
are more involved in the professional work of the women and men of our society
or are engaged in the more trafficked and busy areas of life. Everyone, however,
is in need of evangelization.[251]

Evangelical Option for the Poor

104. The preferential love for the poor has led many to make generous choices
in life, yet not without an element of danger. There is certainly no
incompatibility between the consecrated life and the Lord's option for the poor.
Instead, such a choice has been a constant note of the apostolic charisms, often
inspired by the words and example of the Lord, who was sent to "preach good
news to the poor" (Lk. 4:18) and who invites others to practice the works
of mercy toward the "little ones," as he himself did (cf. Mt. 25:40).
An effective presence in situations of poverty, as well as the community's
involvement in areas of misery and marginalization, have been in recent decades
a sign of the consecrated life which fully embraces not only poverty but also
the life of poor people, including their difficulties, problems and dangers.

In this option it is necessary to open hearts, minds and the creativity of
evangelical love to all the new cases of poverty, which are increasing each day.
One needs only to think of the following: the growing number of unemployed; the
most disadvantaged of countries where people have nothing because of natural
disasters; those areas devastated by violence, oppression and civil war; and the
growing number of immense groups of refugees. Thoughts turn also to the poverty
and suffering of all those who have been affected by drugs and AIDS. There are
also uprooted groups and peoples; minorities not respected because of race;
minority groups subjected to the practice of ethnic cleansing; and groups
suffering because of a systematic exclusion of poorer countries from development
plans of international groups more oriented toward methods of exclusion than
inclusion.

However, we must not forget the world of those who are totally indifferent to
the needs of others: those who seem to be satisfied with themselves because they
do not lack material goods, but who frequently suffer from despair and
loneliness and are tempted to reject the gift of life. They too are searching
for the values of the Gospel and for the peace which comes from Christ, often
without even realizing it.

Today more than ever "the cry of the poor" (cf. Ps. 9:13; Jb.
34:28; Prv. 21:13) is heard rising "from their personal poverty and their
collective misery."[252] Today many people have heard this cry and have
responded, following the path indicated by Paul VI: "That cry must, first
of all, bar you from whatever would be a compromise with any form of social
injustice. It obliges you also to awaken consciences to the drama of misery, and
to the demands of social justice made by the poor in their situation, and to
share their bitter cares. Furthermore, it calls many of your institutes to
rededicate for the good of the poor some of their works—something which many
have already done with generosity. Finally, it enjoins on you a use of goods
limited to what is required, for the fulfillment of the function to which you
are called. It is necessary that in your daily lives you should give proof, even
externally, of authentic poverty.[253]

Concern for the Sick and Suffering

105. Throughout the course of the centuries the church has strongly felt that
the need to serve the sick and suffering is an integral part of her mission. Not
only has she fostered the flourishing of various works of mercy, but she has
also developed within herself many religious institutions whose specific purpose
is to promote, organize, improve and make more widespread the care of the sick.
In conducting the work of evangelization the missionaries have constantly
associated the preaching of the good news with the assistance and care of the
sick.[254]

Today too, the presence and commitment of many religious members of secular
institutes and societies of apostolic life is a sign of the church's concern for
the suffering members of the body of Christ. In following the example of the
Lord, physician of souls and bodies, and in the loving and generous welcome of
every human life, especially of the weak and suffering, the church actualizes a
fundamental aspect of the Lord's mission.

Consecrated persons involved in the health-care apostolate because of the
charism of their own institute, or a choice inspired by it, seek to bear witness
to the "Gospel of suffering."[255] They do so through their service of
the sick, the elderly, the handicapped, the marginalized and all those who are
victims of the new ills afflicting humanity.

In order for this witness to be effective, those in authority in institutes
of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life must see to the appropriate
spiritual, ethical, moral and professional formation of their members. Thus,
through them the church herself will be present in places of treatment and care,
exercising a humanizing effect on medicine and a concrete attention to
individuals. Through the Gospel of charity, which sheds light on the salvific
meaning of suffering, the offering of suffering, united to Christ crucified and
glorified for the salvation of all, can rise up to God.[256]

In the concern for life one must not overlook the world of bioethics and
medical research, and the new problems being raised in the field of genetic
engineering. Those who through following Christ are present by vocation and
mission in these fields cannot help but make the defense of life a commitment
which is justified by God's original plan and the eternal destiny of every human
being.[257]

Educating the Young Toward The Civilization of Love

106. A field open to initiatives by institutes is that of young people, the
future of the church and humanity. In some countries of the first world young
people today are living in a world characterized by a search for great ideals, a
profound disappointment with the broken dreams of ideologies and a surrender to
the surrogates of the false idols of entertainment and sport. They are
frequently the unwitting victims of manipulations which exploit them and lead
them to dehumanizing consumerism and facile pleasure that corrupts and degrades
the person and life itself. In other nations—especially in the Third World—young
people are threatened by extreme poverty, unemployment and the lack of prospects
for the future due to a lack of education or work. The Holy Spirit has planted
in the church particular charisms which reflect Jesus' predilection for young
people, their education and integral promotion.

Together with public schools, a specific field is that of the Catholic
school, for which so many institutes—particularly of religious—have been
founded in times when the education of young people was threatened by a secular
mentality; This task is still a valid option today and awaits new and courageous
apostles of youth.[258]

At this time when the example of our Holy Father John Paul II urges us to
take care of the youth of our world, those who have inherited a particular
charism in this field have a special responsibility. They are called to offer
the best of their energies to rekindle the dialogue with young people and form
them according to the heart of Christ, in an effective and attractive
presentation of the ideals of the Gospel.

Today, the world of youth needs an adequate education based on Christian
principles and respect for human values. This is shown through an acceptance and
education of the young people living on the margins of society as well as
through a determination to give a response to the great problems of young people
today in diverse cultural contexts: unemployment; the lack of basic education;
violence; sexual exploitation; and various forms of dependence. A generous
presence in listening to young people and in becoming involved with them is
necessary so they might find reasons to believe and hope in a civilization of
love.

Artisans and Promoters of Culture

107. The proclamation of Christ is particularly bound to the evangelization
of culture and cultures. This does not mean that culture should be the norm and
measure of the Gospel, but that Christ is the measure of all human work. The
church today undertakes the work of inculturation with profound evangelical
freedom[259] for the purpose of introducing respectfully, through the power of
the Holy Spirit, the values of the Gospel into all human cultures.

The presence of institutes of consecrated life has had a great influence in
the transmission and formation of culture. This happened in the Middle Ages, at
the beginning of Europe's consolidation, when the monasteries were the places in
which the cultural riches of the past were handed on and the new culture of
Christian humanism was developed. This has proven true whenever the light of the
Gospel has enlightened new nations and cultures. Many consecrated persons have
been the promotes of culture and often the defenders, researchers and scholars
of indigenous cultures. In the church's mission there is a special need today to
contribute to a promotion of culture and to the dialogue between culture and
faith.

While respecting the specific role of the laity, consecrated persons have
their own tasks—especially those consecrated persons who by a particular gift
of the Spirit have been called to enlighten the paths of the Gospel in dialogue
with reason and human culture. They must work to offer wise responses to the
many problems and challenges of today's culture, especially in the fields of
philosophy, theology, scientific research and university studies in the Catholic
universities and other institutions entrusted to their care.[260]

Today the world of social communications is one of the most important
"<aeropauses>" for the proclamation of the Gospel and the
formation of consciences. The mass media have a fundamental impact on public
opinion and the formation—or deformation—of conscience. In fact, it has been
noted how they cause a loss of value to religious terms; how they are the cause
of an erosion of traditional values; and how they are a challenge to effective
training in cultural, social and moral values. Nonetheless, they have a
formidable potential for improving communications, uniting the world and
transmitting the truth of the Gospel when they are used for these ends in an
intelligent manner and with authentic professionalism. The consecrated life is
also present in social communications which are serving the needs of the Gospel,
through its charisms and activity stirred up by the Holy Spirit and adapted to
the demands of the time.[261]

Training people in the proper use of the means of communication and the
possibility of transforming them into new "<aeropauses>" for the
Gospel of Christ is a challenge to apostolic activity in society—present and
future.

In Service of the Family

108. The exhortation made by John Paul II to the heads of institutes of
consecrated life is becoming ever more pressing in our day. He urged them
"to consider—always with substantial respect for the proper and original
charism of each one—the apostolate of the family as one of the priority
tasks."[262] Whether in the area of the ordinary pastoral work or through
their contact with families in their diverse apostolic ministries, consecrated
persons share in various ways the current situation of families in all parts of
the world. Some institutes, because of their inspiration from the mystery of
Nazareth or their specific apostolic choice are dedicated to the family
apostolate. In bringing about mutual aid and an exchange of gifts they highlight
the precious value of the vocation to virginity and the complementary aspect of
the call to marriage.

The methods of this apostolate are widely known. One need only recall a key
text from <Familiaris Consortio:> "Hence the possibility for men and
women religious, and members of secular institutes and other institutes of
perfection, either individually or in groups, to develop their service to
families, with particular solicitude for children, especially if they are
abandoned, unwanted, orphaned, poor or handicapped. They can also visit families
and look after the sick; they can foster relationships of respect and charity
toward one-parent families or families that are in difficulties or are
separated; they can offer their own work of teaching and counseling in the
preparation of young people for marriage and in helping couples toward truly
responsible parenthood; they can open their own houses for simple and cordial
hospitality so that families can find there the sense of God's presence and gain
a taste for prayer and recollection, and see the practical examples of lives
lived in charity and fraternal joy as members of the larger family of
God."[263]

Artisans of Peace and Justice

109. One of the dimensions of the new evangelization is human
advancement,[264] a task which is becoming more important in that some aspects
of modern culture tend to dehumanize human existence. At a time when so many
people are marginalized from the benefits which progress can give, it is
important to recall that consecrated persons have played a pioneering role in
the world of education, health care and authentic human advancement in all its
forms. Renewing this commitment in courageous and creative initiatives is
already a part of a global response to the new evangelization.

Called to live according to the spirit of the Beatitudes, members of
institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life are the artisans
of justice and peace in the world. They do so through prayer, witness and a
specific apostolate. In virtue of the link between evangelization and human
advancement pointed out in the church's magisterium, consecrated persons find
themselves sharing and applying the church's concern in the field of justice and
peace. Their "conversion to God's original plan for humanity, as revealed
in the new man, Jesus Christ, will be the measure of their contribution to
hastening in others that conversion of mind and attitudes which will make more
true and stable the reform of economic, social and political structures,
ensuring a more just and peaceful society."[265]

The church's social doctrine can and must be met with a more profound
response. Indeed, it broadens the meaning of traditional apostolates to include
the horizons of the integral development of every person and all peoples. This
plan must evoke a profound reflection which leads to the search for a new
humanism. The consecrated life is often at the crossroads of values and
activities promoting not only the dignity of the human person, the orientation
of the spirit of poverty, cooperation for the common good and the desire for
peace, but also the recognition of supreme values, above all the faith, whose
source and end is in God.

The recent social encyclicals of John Paul II, <Sollicitudo Rei
Socialis> and <Centesimus Annus,> converge in a strong appeal for
development, which cannot be achieved without a call addressed to all our
contemporaries, rich and poor alike, and including all those committed to and
sharing responsibility for the true progress of the human family—a progress
which has social, cultural and spiritual dimensions, and from which those
consecrated to God's cause cannot exempt themselves. As educators and witnesses
to true justice and peace, those who have experienced the newness of the Gospel
in their following of Christ are called to offer their specific collaboration in
this field, communicating it "to other people in their concrete
difficulties, struggles, problems and challenges so that these can be
illuminated and made more human in the light of faith."[266]

Witnessing in their life to the values of peace, justice and development, and
patiently teaching people while seeking to get to the root of problems,
consecrated persons can be witnesses of Christ, who makes all things new.[267]

Witnesses to God's Plan for Humanity

110. Serving the cause of humanity according to God's plan is the task of all
Christians. The consecrated life cannot be exempt from the great concerns and
tasks of the church in preserving the great values of creation and the Gospel.
The cause of peace and justice, the defense of life, the fulfillment of the
moral law inscribed on the human conscience and the safeguarding of creation are
all values which need to be defended and promoted because of their roots in
humanity and in the Gospel. As some emblematic persons in the consecrated life
have demonstrated, consecrated persons have the responsibility to be
particularly sensitive to these problems and to offer to the church their
effective and generous collaboration. Their work can be of great service in
building the civilization of love in communion with the laity and with respect
for their particular apostolic contribution.

A strong common witness of a holiness based on the Gospel, as well as one
promoting the holiness of all the people of God, cannot but produce a more
positive influence in the world. The charisms of the saints demonstrate the
humanizing power of Christian holiness and point to their generous work in the
service of humanity.

For this reason the new evangelization is not limited only to its initial
proclamation nor to an apostolate of Christian initiation. Today, the Christian
fabric of society needs to be repaired everywhere. The consecrated life has an
urgent role and great responsibility in this work. Today, catechetical research
is needed. There is urgent need for the proclamation of the Gospel truth about
the greatest problems of human existence, that is: the relationship of everyone
to God the creator and redeemer; respect for life and the dignity of the human
person; and the universal destination of goods achieved in such a way as to make
the truth of the Gospel shed light on the grave problems of morality. Many
initiatives in pastoral programs of spirituality are needed so as to bring to
maturity the Christian experience among individuals and groups.

The consecrated life has as its purpose to encourage the advancement of the
Christian vocation of the entire people of God, to promote a response to the
universal call to holiness and to form authentic apostles of Christ for our
world. The heritage of spirituality and that of the apostolic activity of
various institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life must be
directed toward this particular service of the faithful so as to offer a unique
contribution to the new evangelization.

In this way it will be clear that the consecrated life, following the example
of Christ the Lord, has a task in the church of transformation and humanization,
and that its charisms are the living words of the Gospel and the presence of the
incarnate Word for the salvation of the world.

CONCLUSION

Fidelity of the Consecrated Life

In a Grace-Filled Moment

111. The celebration of the Synod of Bishops devoted to "the consecrated
life and its role in the church and in the world" takes place as the church
is preparing to celebrate the great jubilee of the year 2000, the 2,000th
anniversary of the incarnation of the Word of God, a time of grace in the spread
of the Gospel in the world and its renewed salvific presence for our society.

The memory of the past is interwoven with the holiness and role of the
consecrated life. Hope for the future—until the Lord returns in the glory of
his kingdom—is also a part of the role to be exercised by the charisms stirred
by the Spirit.

Therefore, in view of the appeals, challenges, reflections and proposals
collected in this <instrumentum laboris> after taking into account the
responses coming from the whole church, the celebration of this synod becomes an
important moment of discernment and encouragement for the consecrated life and
its future, a future open to a hope in the God of history and the Holy Spirit,
who is leading the church to the fullness of truth and of evangelical life.

At this grace-filled moment it is important to recall those four fidelities
proposed to the consecrated life which ensure vitality in its present and hope
for its future.[268]

First of all, <fidelity to Christ and to his Gospel.> Christ, Lord and
bridegroom of the church, master and savior of consecrated persons, is the first
and ultimate reason for their life and mission; the Gospel the foundation, rule
and joy of their existence.

<Fidelity to the church and her mission in the world.> The gift and
duty asked of consecrated persons is to feel with the church, to live her
mystery and ecclesial communion, and to identify with her mission, which is open
to the needs of our world at this moment in history.

<Fidelity to the consecrated life and to the charism of one's
institute.> In an unbroken unity resulting from the work of the Holy Spirit,
the consecrated life is called to be itself in its identity, communion and role,
in faithfulness to its essential elements and in the splendor of the variety of
the spiritual and apostolic charisms of its saints.

<Fidelity to the person and to our age.> As witnesses to God in the
world, consecrated persons are invited to that dynamic fidelity which discovers,
through contemplation of the Lord's countenance and attention to the needs of
the men and women of our day, the paths of salvation through the charisms of the
Gospel sown by the Spirit.

"Now to him who can strengthen you, according to the Gospel, and the
proclamation of Jesus Christ, ... made known to all nations to bring about the
obedience of faith, to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ be glory forever
and ever" (Rom. 16:25-27).

247 Cf. <Redemptoris Missio,> 70; cf. Pontifical Council for
Interreligious Dialogue and Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples,
"Dialogue and Proclamation: Reflections and Orientations on Interreligious
Dialogue and the Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ" (May 19,
1991), 4246.